Entertainment and media lawyer Bryan Thompson has joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP’s Los Angeles office as a special counsel – Corporate and Entertainment. Most recently, Thompson was senior vice president and head of business affairs at The Jackal Group, a studio subsidiary of the Fox Networks Group.
Thompson’s practice covers a wide array of matters, including traditional corporate transactions and governance, entertainment and media matters, and finance matters. Thompson advises clients in various industries, with an emphasis on clients in the media, entertainment, and technology realms.
Prior to joining the firm, Thompson served as in-house counsel to technology, media, and entertainment companies. Before working at the Jackal Group, he served as the head of legal affairs for Whalerock Industries (previously known as BermanBraun), and prior to that he was senior legal counsel at Yahoo!, where he was the primary legal representative for the sports, entertainment, video game, and marketing divisions of the company.
In those roles and in private practice, Thompson served as primary counsel in connection with a number of matters, including the following that occurred prior to him joining the firm:
- Representing both buyers and sellers in M&A transactions, both as outside counsel and as in-house counsel for both targets and acquirers
- Representing lenders and borrowers in connection with a variety of finance matters, including film financings
- Representing issuers and investors in various private placements and other investment transactions
- Establishing online subscriptions and pay-per-view services for a number of digital companies, including acquiring digital rights from providers ranging from the Kardashians to the UFC
- Acquiring distribution rights from established content providers, including major media outlets and various sports leagues
- Providing legal counsel in connection with fantasy sports sites, including the establishment of such sites, ongoing issues related to state gaming laws and other compliance matters, and rights issues regarding sports leagues and players unions (including specifically litigation against the NFL Players Union)
- Providing legal review of investigative journalism, including a series of articles concerning compliance issues at various collegiate athletic programs
- Representing a digital media company in connection with the acquisition of live streaming rights for Major League Baseball games
- Serving as business affairs counsel for all manner of programming, including scripted and unscripted television, feature film, and digital projects
Thompson also provides advice and counsel on entity formations, joint ventures, employment and engagement agreements, content and software licensing, corporate governance issues, privacy law, international distribution matters, and IP issues including rights of publicity, fair use and related copyright matters.
“Bryan brings diverse legal experience in managing deals and transactions in television, film, digital and commercial theater, as well as working with clients on development, production and licensing matters,” said Jason Karlov, chair of Barnes & Thornburg’s Entertainment, Media and Sports Practice Group. “He’s a terrific addition to our growing entertainment practice across the country and bolsters our already thriving television and online content expertise, especially given his high-level experience with Yahoo!, BermanBraun/Whalerock, and the Jackal Group.”
Outside of his legal practice, Thompson is a board member for the Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics and Los Angeles Team Mentoring. Thompson also lectures on entertainment law issues and the rights of publicity and privacy.
Thompson earned his bachelor’s degree, with honors, from the University of Texas at Austin and his J.D., from the University of North Carolina School of Law, where he was a Chancellor’s Scholar and a Moot Court award winner.
With more than 600 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from 13 offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Delaware, Indiana, Los Angeles, Michigan, Minneapolis, Ohio, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews.
