Contact: Mark Fefer, Marketing Communications, 206. 757.8583 or markfefer@dwt.com
JANUARY 26, 2017 – Davis Wright Tremaine is one of just five firms nationwide to be named "Practice Group of the Year" in Media and Entertainment by Law360.
The team was recognized for its success in a number of important cases over the past 12 months, including:
- The defense of Rolling Stone magazine in multiple libel actions arising from Sabrina Rubin Erdely’s article, "A Rape on Campus."
- The defense of free speech rights online for multiple clients, affirming the breadth of the immunity protections in Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, widely regarded as "the most important law on the Internet."
- The defense of two Pulitzer Prize-winning authors against libel claims targeting important investigative works.
- The defense of a corporate news service, establishing that a privately-held company’s confidential financial performance data is not entitled to trade secret status.
- The defense of a Lanham Act and unfair competition claim brought against a political memoirist and his publisher.
- The defense of a "libel-in-fiction" claim and a very aggressive copyright infringement theory on behalf of a screenwriter and a communications professor, respectively.
The Law360 article noted that Davis Wright Tremaine has leveraged its longstanding national reputation with traditional media work to encompass a wide range of new legal issues vital to all companies with an online presence, such as privacy and security. The firm’s annual DOWNLOAD event, held in New York and Los Angeles, draws executives from industries as varied as fashion, payments, and consumer products to discuss legal topics triggered by digital technology. Regardless of the medium or the legal topic, the team strives to protect, not hinder, free speech, the media practice co-chair, Thomas R. Burke, told Law360.
About Davis Wright Tremaine
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP is a national law firm with more than 550 lawyers representing clients based throughout the United States and around the world. The firm was recently named "Innovative Law Firm of the Year" by the International Legal Technology Association for the second consecutive year.
The firm’s media and entertainment group is regularly recognized as one of the very best in the nation. The group’s recent honors include being named "Law Firm of the Year" in Media Law and in Copyright Law by Best Law Firms and U.S. News. Law360 named Laura Handman 2016 "MVP of the Year" in Media and Entertainment. The 2016 Chambers USA guide to "America’s Leading Lawyers for Business" ranked Davis Wright Tremaine in Band 1 for Media & Entertainment Litigation in California, New York, and Washington, D.C. The firm also has more lawyers ranked by Chambers as national leaders in First Amendment Litigation than any firm in the country. For more information, visit www.dwt.com.