Los Angeles Metropolitan Area
I'm an attorney with a passion for digital and traditional media, who has worked on award-winning productions in film, television and the interactive space and defended content creators against claims of all kinds. I am comfortable with risk and enjoy helping clients evaluate the risks they encounter as they strive to produce cutting-edge content. My practice naturally focuses on intellectual-property, communications, First-Amendment and other issues that affect the companies and technologies that make what we watch, amuse and delight us, and inform all of our worldviews. I provide counseling for feature films and for programming on HBO, Netflix, Seeso, Funny or Die, CNBC, E!, ABC, Comedy Central, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, Participant Media, MTV, VH1, Adult Swim, IFC, TruTV, Showtime Networks, Discovery Communications, SuperDeluxe, Crackle, YouTube, and Pivot, with an emphasis on programming with intensive social-media engagement. Among many other productions, I've counseled Spotlight (winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture), @Midnight (two-time Emmy winner for Best Social Media Experience), The Daily Show, The Nightly Show, South Park, Love, Colony, Janis: Little Girl Blue, The Real World, The Challenge, Celebrity Wife Swap, With Bob and David, Comedy Bang Bang, Guy's Grocery Games, Rick and Morty, and Tim & Eric's Bedtime Stories. I've successfully defended content creators from claims of all sorts, including claims for defamation, false light, right of publicity, copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and breach of implied and express contract. Previous to DWT, I also litigated patent cases. I've argued before California Superior Court, the Central District of California, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Specialties: Pre-Broadcast & Pre-Publication Counseling, Fair Use, Copyright, Defamation, Idea-Submission, DMCA, Right-of-Publicity and other media-related litigation.
As an attorney at DWT, in the leading communications/media practice in the United States, I live and breathe media and IP law. I handle the entire spectrum of content-related and First Amendment litigation, including copyright, idea-submission, trademark, defamation, false light, and public records lawsuits. I also perform pre-broadcast review and counseling related scripted and non-scripted television programming with an emphasis on cutting-edge shows with high levels of social media and Internet engagement. I assist producers with the evaluation of risk involved in content-production of all kinds.
Litigation associate at Irell & Manella litigating intellectual-property matters.
Assist the Court with matters regarding entire spectrum of federal civil litigation, including constitutional law, intellectual property law, ERISA law, securities law, class actions, and matters in diversity. Drafted minute and formal orders and published opinions.
UCLA Law Review, Executive Editor UCLA Entertainment Law Review, Senior Articles Editor Concentration in Entertainment & Media Law & Policy Research assistant to Law School Dean Mike Schill Publications: Anti-SLAPP Law Make Benefit for Glorious Entertainment Industry of America: Borat, Reality Bites, and the Construction of an Anti-SLAPP Fence Around the First Amendment 26 CARDOZO ARTS & ENT. L.J. 639 (2009) The Expressive Workplace Doctrine: Protecting the Public Discourse from Hostile Work Environment Actions, 15 UCLA ENT. L. REV. 1 (2008)