This July marked the 30th anniversary of the first episode of Seinfeld. It’s been thirty years since Jerry, Elaine, Kramer, and George first graced the airwaves with their brand of lovable misanthropy. Most people remember the “Show About Nothing” for its thumping, synth-infused theme music; its rich universe filled with zany recurring and one-off characters; and its absurd depictions of everyday interactions between people. But here at Music City Law, we remember Seinfeld as a show about the law.
The show is replete with legal parables set in everyday life. There’s the time when Kenny Bania, a hack comedian whom Jerry loathes, (wrongly) invokes contract law to force Jerry to take him to dinner after he gifted Jerry an Armani suit. Or when Elaine’s boss changes his will to leave a sizeable fortune to Elaine, only to later disinherit her on the mistaken suspicion that she’s trying to murder him to obtain said inheritance. Or when Elaine refuses to give Kramer a little girl’s bike that she promised him for neck-pain relief that turned out to only make things worse. They then arbitrated their dispute before Newman, the mailman and neighbor who doubles as Jerry’s nemesis, who presided over the case like a portly King Solomon. I mean, even the show’s (much-maligned) series finale took place in a courthouse!
We could ramble on and on about Seinfeld legal trivia, but the point is this: Seinfeld reminds us, in albeit ridiculous fashion, that the minutiae of our day-to-day lives are full of legal pitfalls. Relationships with friends and business partners can go south. End-of-life planning can go awry. People you trusted can renege on agreements. But Music City Law can help you avoid those pitfalls. We can draft ironclad contracts or wills for you. We can advise you on the best course of action as you navigate uncertain legal territory. Or, if it comes to it, we can fight for you in a court of law, though we don’t promise to have the flair and eloquence of Jackie Chiles.