Hacks and Too Much actress Meg Stalter and attorney Adam Cooper were photographed March 27 in Los Angeles. Photographed by Roger Kisby; Stalter styling: Janelle Jimenez & Kathryn Typaldos. Stalter hair: Clayton Hawkins. Stalter MUA: Hinako Murashige. Even in Hollywood, nobody is above the law — even if you’re above the line. So if you’re a star, mogul or auteur who suddenly finds themselves on the wrong side of a contract dispute or a copyright infringement claim — or, God forbid, a subpoena in a case involving a Colleen Hoover adaptation — here are the 100 attorneys most likely to pull you out of hot water.
The lawyers on this list are each top of their field — with specialties in talent, litigation and corporate law — but that’s not the only reason they’ve been selected. Each of them worked on cases or deals in the past year that in some way, big or small, helped shape the town. Some negotiated unheard-of paydays for their clients (Ryan Coogler owes his attorney a standing ovation), some helped pull together acquisitions that altered the very foundations of the Hollywood landscape (rhymes with Schmaramount and Shmorner Brothers), some helped Jennifer Garner take her children’s food company public (with an $845 million valuation!).
All of them help keep the wheels of this industry turning, one billable hour at a time.
-
Tom Ara
Corporate
Weil, Gotshal & Manges
Loyola Law School
Ara has a knack for showing up when valuable screen assets are changing hands. During Village Roadshow Entertainment’s Chapter 11 restructuring, he advised Domain Capital Group on its ownership rights to the company’s catalog — which includes everything from The Matrix to Mad Max — and on the catalog’s sale to Alcon Entertainment. He also advised the investor consortium behind Angry Birds 3 on its Paramount distribution pact and guided Peaky Blinders producer Caryn Mandabach in the sale of her production company to Banijay U.K.
