Top Lawyers In Usa

"No envelope mix-up here! Meet the attorneys behind the 'Moonlight' Oscar winner, Melania's lawsuit, Bill O'Reilly's downturn, the year's biggest media megamergers and pretty much anything that matters in Hollywood. Extortion. Messy divorces. Nine-figure deals with Chinese media conglomerates. It's been a busy year for Hollywood's power lawyers, who once more gather in THR's webpages for the magazine's annual Power Attorneys issue. The women and men on this listing manage a range of cases, from simple gift contracts to complex corporate mergers that take weeks to iron out, but all of them have things in common. All of them love working in the entertainment industry. All of them play a vital role in maintaining Hollywood's wheels turning. They're all at the very top of the area. And judging from THR's survey -- they all drink a lot of coffee (an average of 5.5 cups a day, if calculations include the guy who promised to down 97 cups). Below, the Power Lawyers of 2017 discuss their most significant instances, disclose their private political beliefs (just 14 percent think Donald Trump will get impeached) and answer the age-old question, "Which superhero would you most want to reflect? ""

Jonathan Zavin

Loeb & Loeb Alma mater Columbia Law School Why he matters Zavin is one of Hollywood's go-to copyright litigators. Last year, he also represented Paramount and CBS at a copyright lawsuit against the producers of a $1.4 million crowdfunded Star Trek fan movie. At a big win for Zavin in January, a judge ignored the fan film's fair use claims. He also achieved a victory for Viacom contrary to Gibson Guitar's claims of infringement on its own Flying V signature. Last TV show binged Downton Abbey

Joseph Calabrese

Courtesy of Gittings Photography Alma mater Cornell Law School Why he things Calabrese is one of the best Hollywood-Asia dealmakers. He led the group informing Legendary Entertainment at its $3.5 billion purchase by China's Dalian Wanda Group but also helped Warner Bros. in its acquisition of DramaFever, a video streaming service which features Korean content. He continues to operate with the International Olympic Committee on the progression of its over-the-top TV platform. Most dangerous thing I've done in a decade "The Cresta [sled] run. It's headfirst down a twisting kilometer-long ice chute at St. Moritz, Switzerland. "

Marty Katz

Sheppard Mullin Alma mater University of Michigan Law School He matters When you're a Hollywood litigator, all kinds of bizarre stuff can pop up. Like a dancer's collapse on a Carnival cruise boat. Katz is working with this while also planning to proceed to trial for investors looking to recover what they spent for the troubled movie adaptation of Martin Amis' London Fields. But his bread and butter is still profit-participation instances. He also 's representing MGM in a dispute over a pair of Clint Eastwood classics and lately completed arbitrating a case between a music movie which became a viral sensation on the web. Comfort food "Pizza and fries. "

Lisa Callif

Donaldson & Callif Alma mater Southwestern Law School Why she matters in the event that you've obtained a documentary in the works, Callif and partner Michael Donaldson are the ones you call to ensure your topics don't sue. This year's Sundance festival featured nearly two dozen movies by her company 's clients, for example, feature Ingrid Functions West, which she calls for a modern-day Single White Female. When Instagram wouldn't provide permission to use its logo in the movie, Callif didn't bat an eye. "We wrote a comment letter stating it's fine to use those trademarks," she states. "You can't create a movie set from the current day with no social media. " Most dangerous thing I've accomplished in a decade "I had two kids. "