Co-Founder of the Firm, and with over 40 years of practice, Steven consistently has been recognized as one of the leading lawyers in his fields of practice, including in Best Lawyers in America, Southern California Super Lawyers, the LA Business Journal, the TMR 1000, and Who’s Who in International Business Law. Focusing on branding and intellectual property, entertainment, media, digital and software technologies, advertising and promotion and general business, his clients have included many of the best-known companies in consumer products, entertainment, digital and software technology, retail, hospitality, food and beverage, and fashion, as well as celebrities, athletes, media personalities, and authors. Steven also has served as outside general counsel to start-up, emerging, growth and established companies in varied industries, and currently is Chief Legal Officer for LanguageLine Solutions, the world’s leading language services company.

Steven’s legal practice has consisted of counseling, transactions and litigation (including mediation and arbitration) in the following areas:

  • General business, including entity formation and governance, small business acquisitions/mergers and inter-company co-ventures, due diligence and as general counsel/CLO, oversight of all corporate legal and compliance matters
  • Branding – individual, product and corporate (domestic and international)
  • Intellectual property — trademark, copyright, trade dress, publicity rights, trade secrets
  • Global trademark strategy, registration, management and enforcement
  • Digital, interactive and social media (including AI) development, acquisition and marketing
  • Licensing and sponsorship
  • Entertainment — film, television, video, music and publishing deals
  • Sports – representation of professional athletes in licensing, sponsorship and entertainment deals
  • Advertising and promotion and direct sales (including long and short form commercials, internet affiliate deals, integrated marketing, co-branding and co-marketing, etc.)
  • Domain name acquisition and enforcement
  • Trade secrets, privacy and confidentiality
  • Mediation and arbitration as mediator or arbitrator

Recognition

Consistently elected annually by peers to Best Lawyers in America, International Who’s Who of International Business Lawyers, Southern California Super Lawyers

  • Named one of the top trademark practitioners in the US and globally by World Trademark Review (WTR 1000) and Managing Intellectual Property magazine and named in Guide to the World’s Leading Trademark Law Practitioners and as an LA Business Journal “Best of the Bar.”
  • Co-author of the Architectural Works Amendment (1990) of the U.S. Copyright Law.
  • Former Editor-in-Chief of the International Trademark Association’s The Trademark Reporter®
  • Former Editor of the Bulletin of the Copyright Society of the USA
  • Former adjunct professor of trademark and unfair competition law, Brooklyn Law School and visiting adjunct professor, NYU Law School
  • Co-authored the Handbook of Trademark Law (published by the International Trademark Association) for three years
  • Created and chaired the INTA’s first Branding and Social Media Conference (2013)
  • Created and for many years chaired or co-chaired the Practicing Law Institute’s Advanced Licensing Seminar
  • Awarded the 2014 Malibu Times Business Dolphin Award for pro bono representation of local charitable organizations
  • Annual guest lecturer on Entertainment and Intellectual Property, UCLA Entertainment Extension Course

Bar Admissions

  • New York (1981), California (2004), Arizona (1994)

Education

  • J.D. St. John’s University School of Law Queens, New York, Law Review Articles Editor
  • B.A. State University of NY at Buffalo, New York, Biology, Psychology and Film

Associations and Activities

  • American Bar Association
  • California, New York and Arizona Bar Associations
  • Malibu Jewish Center & Synagogue, former President and current Board Member and Legal Counsel
  • Malibu Film Society, Co-founder and former Legal Counsel
  • The Malibu Dolphin Charitable Foundation, former Board Member and Legal Counsel
  • Malibu Labor Exchange, former Board Member and Legal Counsel

T: 310.457.6100

E: [email protected]