In 1951, the AG reorganized into the Writers Guild of America East and West, in recognition of the growing complexity of representing members in many different fields of entertainment writing.

In early-2019, ahead of the expiration of its franchise agreements with the Association of Talent Agents (ATA) on April 6, the WGA announced an intent to enforce a new Code of Conduct prohibiting talent agents from holding any financial stake in the producer of a work written by its members or deriving "any revenue or other benefit from a Writer's involvement in or employment" in a covered work, besides a percentage commission.

[5] On April 12, 2019, the WGA failed to renew its franchise agreement with the ATA (which attempted to compromise by proposing that writers receive 0.8% of gross profits from packaging deals);[6] its executive director Karen Stuart stated that "despite our best efforts, today's outcome was driven by the Guild's predetermined course for chaos", and that the Code of Conduct "will hurt all artists, delivering an especially painful blow to mid-level and emerging writers, while dictating how agencies of all sizes should function."

"[10] WGA West president David Goodman stated that "in a period of unprecedented profits and growth of our business ... writers themselves are actually earning less".

"[12] After Endeavor and the UTA filed lawsuits against the WGA accusing it of engaging in an "illegal group boycott", the WGA sent a cease and desist notice to the ATA stating that "the ATA and its members have continued to collusively impose packaging fees on programs written by WGA-represented writers", and that "following news that Verve had negotiated a Code of Conduct and Franchise Agreement with the WGA, the ATA, and its leading members closed ranks and threatened to retaliate against Verve and, implicitly, against any agency that subsequently reached an agreement with the guild.

"[13] All four major agencies later signed franchise agreements with the WGA, which include mandating compliance with the Code of Conduct by prohibiting them from holding more than a 20% interest in an affiliated production company.