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Street art is part of the culture in many cities. It ranges from common graffiti sprayed by vandals, to beautiful public art commissioned by building owners and cities, to advertising paid for by corporations. In a video report, Lawyers.com Editor-in-Chief Larry Bodine discusses a wide range of street art and the legal issues that often arise. About 80% of graffiti is "tagger" graffiti, sprayed on walls by suburban teenagers, according to Keep America Beautiful. Kids do it for fame, rebellion and self-expression -- and it's illegal. A city like Chicago spends over $6 million a year to clean up graffiti. But public art is considered culturally enriching and socially desirable. It can include guerilla sculptures, sticker art and street posters too. Legal street art has made its way into the mainstream art, like the iconic "Hope" poster from 2008 Obama campaign, which was created by street artist Shepard Fairley. The works of the British street artist Banksy have been sold at auction for $600,000, and his artwork is sought by collectors. What should you do if you want to create street art? For private property, get permission from the owner and make sure you have a written contract. Among other things, spell out who owns the copyright to the artwork. You don't want to find that prints are being made of your artwork and that you don't own the rights. Be sure that the city allows property owners to display art on their walls. In some cities it is illegal for landowners to allow any graffiti on their walls if it's visible from any other property. In other cases you'll need to obtain a permit. Check with the local or state commission for the arts, and determine if the government is requesting proposals to create works for public places. You could get paid handsomely for artwork that would otherwise be considered a crime. If you want more information on street art, check out Wooster Collective. The website is the best destination to find videos, lectures and lists of street artists, with links to their professional websites.

If you're of a certain age, you know the image of Smokey the Bear, and the message he delivered: "Only YOU can prevent forest fires!" But Lawyers.com videojournalist Ed Alpern reports when Brooklyn activist and artist, Lopi LaRoe, became involved in protesting hydraulic fracturing (also known as fracking) on federal lands, she envisioned Smokey in another way. She created a banner where Smokey said, "Only YOU can prevent faucet fires!" The image spread like wildfire on the Internet. A lot of people loved it and wanted it on a t-shirt. So Lopi created a t-shirt design, printed shirts and sold them. Still people wanted more, so Lopi made them available online. This caught the attention of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, which holds the rights to Smokey's image. Lopi received a cease and desist email. It said her use of the image was unauthorized and a statute authorized collection of royalties and criminal penalties of six months in prison and fines of up to $150,000. Evan Sarzin, an attorney in New York, wrote a response to the Forest Service's cease and desist letter. He said Smokey being an image, a recognized icon, doesn't hold himself above political or cultural comment. Lopi's Smokey fits the definition of a parody because her image transformed the original. Evan said you can lampoon or parody something. It doesn't matter if it is sophomoric and flat or serious and precise comment. It is still protected. Helen Cleveland, the manager of Fire Prevention at the Forest Service told Lawyers.com that before Lopi started to sell products, it was freedom of speech. But after Lopi started selling the t-shirts, she violated the Act. Helen said the matter has been referred to USDA lawyers. Now, a national advocacy group, the Forest Service Employes for Environmental Ethics has taken up Lopi's cause. In 1993, before becoming the FSEEE executive director, Andy Stahl was part of a group that successfully sued the Forest Service to use Smokey's image for an environmental ad. He also sees the Forest Service as losing its case against Lopi. Lopi is not backing down. If the Forest Service sues her, she said it will garner more attention to the cause. "We want our messages to be amplified. That's why I make political art," said Lopi. She continues to make t-shirts, a move most likely to fan the flames.