Grateful Dead Lawyer Begins His Own Long, Strange Trip

[WSJ_law_blog]

The wolf came in, I got my cards
We sat down for a game
I cut my deck to the queen of spades
but the cards were all the same
–from “Dire Wolf”

For LB readers of a certain generation who cherish their bootleg recordings of Grateful Dead concerts, it’s time to light a candle for the passing of the lawyer who made them possible. Hal Kant, the longtime attorney for the famous hippie band, whose stationery was inscribed “legally dead,” now is. He died Sunday in Revo, Nev., from pancreatic cancer at age 77, according to the Hollywood Reporter, and was eulogized in the WSJ’s Remembrances section Saturday. While many bands fiercely fought the taping of their shows — the Doobie Brothers appeared on two episodes of the ’70s sitcom “What’s Happening!!” to teach the character Rerun a lesson in the vagaries of illegal bootlegging — Kant gave the legal nod for the Dead’s legions of Deadheads to make their own not-for-profit tapes and pass them around. It was recording industry heresy.

But that doesn’t mean unlicensed Dead paraphernalia got a pass. Kant, a top card player, spent much time suing rogue vendors on behalf of the band. After Kant notified Ben & Jerry’s that he would sue when the ice cream company named one of its flavors Cherry Garcia, ice cream wizard Ben Cohen sent a note to Jerry Garcia suggesting, “Let’s not deal with these idiot lawyers.” In response, Kant threatened a defamation suit. But the ice cream company’s lawyer flew to L.A. to find Kant in a good mood and amenable to a settlement. He had just won the Pot-Limit Omaha in the 1987 World Series of Poker.