Professional Experience
Mr. Kaufman’s practice focuses on entertainment and media law, copyright, Internet law, content and music licensing, e-commerce and the evolving new technologies in the entertainment and computer fields.
Mr. Kaufman represents a wide range of clients in the entertainment, computer, online, sports and communications industries, including television networks, computer and Internet technology companies, media and technology investors, private equity firms, television and video producers, website operators, telecommunication companies, new media entrepreneurs, music publishers, recording artists and authors.
Mr. Kaufman has extensive experience as both in-house and outside counsel in the entertainment and communications industries. Immediately prior to joining the firm, Mr. Kaufman was a partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. Previously, he served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel of Showtime/The Movie Channel Inc. (now known as Showtime Networks Inc.); as Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs and General Counsel of PolyGram Records, Inc.; and as General Counsel of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. In two of those positions, he was the first in-house attorney and organized the in-house legal department. He also served as assistant counsel of a U.S. Senate Judiciary Subcommittee and as law clerk to Judge Warren J. Ferguson of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Mr. Kaufman is a frequent speaker and author on entertainment law, intellectual property and issues involving the convergence of the entertainment, communications and computer industries. He has chaired programs and spoken at industry conferences for the Practising Law Institute, the Computer Law Association, the National Association of Broadcasters, the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, the American Intellectual Property Law Association and the District of Columbia Bar, among others. He also served as a Visiting Lecturer at Yale Law School, teaching a course on copyright, entertainment and Internet law. Mr. Kaufman has been profiled by Legal Times as one of the leading intellectual property lawyers in the Washington, D.C. area. He was also selected for inclusion in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business (for intellectual property and media & entertainment) and in The Best Lawyers in America (for entertainment law and intellectual property law).
Education
Yale Law School, J.D., 1972.
Editor, Yale Law Journal. Harvard College, A.B., magna cum laude, 1969.
Chair, Harvard Policy Committee.
Honors & Awards
Washington, DC Super Lawyers, for Intellectual Property, 2008. Named as one of The Best Lawyers in America, for both entertainment law and intellectual property law, 2008- 2010.
Named as one of “America’s Leading Lawyers for Business,” in the media & entertainment practice area as well as the intellectual property practice area, Chambers USA, 2007-2008.
Named by Legal Times as one of the leading intellectual property lawyers in Washington, D.C., 2003.
Publications
“Issues in Entertainment Industry Transactions,” Practising Law Institute, 2007.
“Television Production, Financing and Distribution,” Practising Law Institute, 2007.
“Copyright and Entertainment Law Issues Involving User-Generated Content Sites,” New York State Bar Association, 2007.
“Content and Entertainment License Agreements,” Practising Law Institute, 2007.
“US Supreme Court Hears MGM v Grokster Case,” Legal Week, April 28, 2005.
“Online Content Licensing and Web Site Development Agreements,” District of Columbia Bar, 2001.
“Content, Contracts and Convergence on the Internet: Current Legal and Business Issues,” Law Journal Seminars, 2000
“Entertainment Law Meets the Internet: The Impact of the Internet and Digitalization on the Entertainment Industry,” Law Journal Seminars, 1999.
“Legal and Business Issues for On-Line Publishers and Content Providers,” Computer Law Association, 1996.
“Multimedia and Interactive Technology Licensing,” Law Journal Seminars, 1994.
Speaking Engagements
Speaker, “Distribution Strategies for Online Videos: What Does the Future Hold?,” Future of Television Conference, New York, NY, November 19, 2008. Speaker, “Copyright Law and Litigation,” District of Columbia Bar, October 22, 2008. Speaker, “E-Commerce Commercial Contracts – A Checklist for In-House Counsel,” E-Commerce Best Practices Conference at Stanford Law School, June 13, 2008. Speaker, “Content, Entertainment and Database Licensing Agreements” and “Advanced Licensing Agreements 2008,” Practising Law Institute, Chicago, IL, April 22, 2008.
Speaker, “Content, Entertainment and Database Licensing Agreements” and “Advanced Licensing Agreements 2008,” Practising Law Institute, New York City, NY, March 28, 2008.
Speaker, “Counseling Clients in the Entertainment Industry 2008,” Practising Law Institute, New York City, NY, March 17, 2008.
Speaker, “Music Composition for Film,” Washington, DC Independent Film Festival, Washington, DC, March 16, 2008.
Speaker, “An Insider’s Perspective: Current Issues in Sports and Entertainment Law,” Howard University School of Law, Washington, DC, March 11, 2008.
Speaker, “Content, Entertainment and Database Licensing Agreements” and “Advanced Licensing Agreements 2008,” Practising Law Institute, San Francisco, CA, February 29, 2008.
Co-Chair, annual conference on “Counseling Clients in the Entertainment Industry,” Practising Law Institute, 2005-present.
Speaker and Moderator, “Content and Entertainment License Agreements” program at annual conference on “Advanced Licensing Agreements,” Practising Law Institute, 2003-present.
Faculty for annual CLE program, “An Overview of Copyright Law and Litigation,” District of Columbia Bar, 2002-present.
Speaker, “Internal Copyright Controls and Management,” American Intellectual Property Law Association Annual Meeting, 2007.
Moderator, program on “Current Issues in Music Licensing,” Copyright Society of the U.S.A., 2007.
Speaker, “User-Generated Content,” New York State Bar Association, 2007.
Speaker, “Copyright: The Year in Review,” American Intellectual Property Law Association Annual Meeting, 2006.
Faculty for CLE course, “Copyright Law and Litigation in the Digital Era,” Cognistar, 2003.
Speaker, “Music Rights on the Internet,” South by Southwest Music Conference, 2002.
Speaker, “Drafting and Negotiating Agreements Involving Digital Rights,” Association of the Bar of the City of New York, 2002.
Speaker, “The Future of Digital Music,” National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, 2000.
Speaker, “Content, Licensing and Copyright on the Internet,” Federal Communications Bar Association, 1999.
Speaker, “Creating and Licensing Content on the Internet,” District of Columbia Bar, 1997.
Speaker, “Financing Television and Video Productions,” Women in Film and Video, 1996.
Visiting Lecturer, “Music and the Law” course focusing on entertainment law, copyright and Internet law, Yale Law School, 1994-1999.
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