The Hollywood Reporter named two Greenberg Glusker attorneys, Bert Fields and Bonnie E. Eskenazi, in its fifth annual list of the most influential entertainment and media attorneys in America. Both Fields and Eskenazi have been mainstays on the “Power Lawyers” list — Fields since its inception in 2007, with Eskenazi joining him a year later — and each was prominently recognized this year among approximately 30 litigation specialists nationwide for their achievements in the entertainment industry’s highest-profile disputes.
"I echo The Hollywood Reporter‘s description of Bert and Bonnie--iconic and in the center of battles,” said Greenberg Glusker Managing Partner Stephen Smith. “We congratulate them for their strong commitment to clients and their influence on our next generation of entertainment attorneys.”
Dubbing him “The Legend,” the publication recognized Fields as a “rare full-service consigliere” because of his combined management of litigation and contract negotiations, a hybrid practice that has been described fondly as Old Hollywood. In his more than 40 years of counseling in the entertainment industry, Fields has amassed an A-list group of clients including performers, directors, writers, producers, studios, talent agencies, book publishers and record companies. Clients include Weinstein Co., DreamWorks, MGM, United Artists, Warren Beatty, Tom Cruise, Dustin Hoffman, James Cameron, Mike Nichols, Jeffrey Katzenberg, David Geffen, Jerry Bruckheimer, Joel Silver, Sherry Lansing, The Beatles, Madonna, Sony Music and many others. In addition, he has represented such major authors as Mario Puzo, James Clavell, Tom Clancy, Clive Cussler and Richard Bach.
Eskenazi’s fourth consecutive appearance as aTHR Power Lawyer comes on the heels of her being named one of California’s “Top Women Litigators” by the Los Angeles Daily Journal. This year, The Hollywood Reporter highlighted Eskenazi’s counsel on behalf of the family of late music icon Bob Marley in a high-profile royalties dispute with Universal Music Group and her successful representation of the J.R.R. Tolkien estate against New Line Cinema. She continues her representation of the Tolkien Estate in a licensing dispute with the studio, while representing Marvel Entertainment in a major dispute. Her other clients have included composer Hans Zimmer, children’s animation studio Classic Media, opera singer Renée Fleming, violinist Joshua Bell, the owners of the rights to “Alvin & The Chipmunks,” studio chief Jeffrey Katzenberg, MGM, Paramount Pictures, DIC animation and special effects company Hydraulx. The “Power Lawyers” profile also featured Eskenazi’s pro bono work for The Festival of New American Musicals, a non-profit arts organization that seeks to bring musical theater to disadvantaged youth in Southern California.
Fields and Eskenazi also co-teach a class in entertainment law at Stanford Law School.
Click here to read Greenberg Glusker's announcement that Chambers USA America’s Leading Lawyers for Business recognized the Firm’s Media and Entertainment Litigation practice once again as Band 1, Top Ranked in its 2011 directory edition. This is the fifth consecutive year that the Firm has placed in the highly selective Band 1 category.