My client says lawyers are scratching their heads at the SCOTUS decision in AWF v. Goldsmith, but I learned a lot from this lawsuit when it was still a circuit case.

Lynn Goldsmith, the photographer whose image of Prince is at the center of AWF, at some point put words to her philosophy of shooting people. She said her intention was to portray Prince in a “vulnerable” way.

Goldsmith described doing Prince’s makeup, and Prince doing hers, as a trust-building exercise. Her studio had a wardrobe closet, and she tried to lighten Prince’s dark mood by having him try on outlandish outfits. She really had to court Prince.

The shoot only produced 17 photos because — it was implied — Prince stormed out of the studio in an emotional way.

I immediately saw a similarity in Goldsmith’s courtship of Prince to what I do with my clients, except completely different. Somehow, my clients always end up telling me to turn off the call recorder, and proceed to explain the “real story” to me. And knowing the real story helps when you’re making a manicured version of it.

Lynn Goldsmith, hero of the infringed.