Laura Brill

With a focus on complex civil litigation and appeals relating to media, entertainment, commercial, and regulatory disputes, founding partner Laura W. Brill has secured precedent-setting victories in numerous appearances before state and federal courts.

She is a certified appellate specialist who handles a broad array of high-profile business disputes involving contracts, torts, intellectual property, governance issues; First Amendment and other constitutional issues; fine art restitution; government contracting, and challenges to municipal regulation.

Recognized as among the top appellate and intellectual property litigators in California, Ms. Brill served as a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, with whom she has co-authored several articles, and has been a law school guest lecturer at Yale, Georgetown, UCLA, and USC.

She is a thought leader who publishes and speaks widely on legal issues, including the First Amendment, entertainment and copyright law, appellate practice, and the legal profession. Ms. Brill maintains an active pro bono docket, with a focus on equal rights, freedom of expression, and challenges to the use of the initiative process.

Education:

• Columbia University School of Law, J.D., 1994
  • First in class
  • James Kent Scholar
  • Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar
  • John Ordronaux Prize
  • Emil Schlesinger Labor Law Prize
  • Columbia Law Review, Book Reviews Editor
• Brown University, A.B., American Civilization, 1987

Representative Matters:

• Obtained a favorable bench trial ruling and appellate rulings for the heirs of the creator of “Hawaii Five-0” in a rights dispute with the creator’s former talent agent. The case ultimately settled during a jury trial on the heirs’ affirmative claims.
• Successfully defended Current TV LLC and former Vice President Al Gore in district court and on appeal against claims brought by a consultant seeking a multi-million dollar “finder’s fee” in connection with the sale of Current to Al Jazeera.
• Representing heirs of a holocaust survivor in a federal court action against a Spanish state-owned museum for restitution of fine art looted by Nazis.
• Represented cable TV stations, TV production companies, radio broadcasters, individuals, and high-tech companies in disputes concerning licensing, partnership and LLC obligations, royalty audits, finders’ fees, rights of first refusal, copyright termination, idea submission, defamation, and other business disputes.
• Representing Los Angeles County in a lawsuit seeking to invalidate a new state law that puts the redrawing of county supervisors’ districts in the hands of a 14-member citizens committee.
• Represented Greenpeace USA in Ninth Circuit appeal of injunction against protest activity relating to Arctic drilling.
• Represented North County Communications Corp., a leading cell phone service provider, in an appellate matter regarding private rights of action to enforce compensation provisions of the Federal Communications Act.
• Represented a leading securities industry trade group in the filing of an amicus brief in the Fifth Circuit regarding third-party liability for securities violations in civil litigation arising out of the Enron scandal.
• Represented a leading DVR manufacturer in defending a $94 million judgment for patent infringement and to enforce an injunction.
• Represent civil rights and pro-democracy organizations in filing amicus briefs challenging partisan gerrymandering before the U.S. Supreme Court and Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
• Represented the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund as an amicus curiae in a successful U.S. Supreme Court challenge to a Texas criminal law that punished same-sex sexual conduct.

Bar and Court Admissions:

• California, 1998
• New York, 1995
• U.S. District Courts
  • Central, Northern, and Southern Districts of California
  • Southern and Eastern Districts of New York
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
• U.S. Supreme Court