Overview
Steven Marenberg is the Chair of the firm’s Entertainment and Media Litigation Group. Mr. Marenberg’s practice encompasses a wide range of complex commercial litigation matters in various industries, with particular concentrations in media and entertainment litigation, technology-related disputes, copyright, trademark and other intellectual property litigation, and antitrust and business tort disputes. His clients have included some of the nation’s leading technology companies, motion picture studios, television networks, production companies, music companies, interactive game companies, and high net worth individuals.
Mr. Marenberg has also been recognized as one of the country’s foremost litigators by publications including the The Legal 500, Benchmark Litigation, Lawdragon, National Law Journal, Best Lawyers in America, Super Lawyers, and the Los Angeles Daily Journal, among others. The Los Angeles Business Journal has listed him as among Los Angeles’ most influential attorneys. He has been named to the Variety Impact and Hollywood Reporter’s Power Lawyers list every year since their inception.
In its Chambers USA guide, Chambers & Partners has consistently ranked Mr. Marenberg in Band 1 or Band 2 for Media and Entertainment litigation, citing client comments such as: “He’s fantastic. There isn’t a single case that I wouldn’t trust Steve to handle and give me the best representation on” and “He is an exceptional litigator who understands complex situations and knows how to drive efficiently to the required result." In a recent Guide, Chambers reported another client’s praise: “Steve Marenberg is a great strategist and effective advocate. Judges love him.” One peer described him as an “excellent lawyer,” “I love to have him on my side and hate to be against him.” Another reviewer lauded his “excellent’ trial skills, in particular his connection with the jury,” and highlighted his ability to be “aggressive without being unpleasant,” noting that “he is very professional, very smart, and willing to think independently and creatively.”
Mr. Marenberg has extensive trial experience in both federal and state courts, and arbitrations.
Recognitions
- Benchmark Litigation Guide, Litigation Star.
- Lawdragon, 500 Leading Litigators in America.
- The Legal 500 USA, Media and Entertainment: Litigation.
- Ranked in Band 1 or Band 2 for Media and Entertainment Litigation in Chambers USA Guide for the past twenty years.
- Named to Variety’s Impact and The Hollywood Reporter’s Power Lawyers lists every year since their inception
- Selected as a Legal Trailblazer by the National Law Journal
- Named an IP Star by Managing Intellectual Property
- Recognized by Best Lawyers in America in the area of commercial litigation, entertainment law, and IP litigation
- Recognized as one of Los Angeles’ Most Influential Attorneys by the Los Angeles Business Journal.
Education
- University of Chicago Law School, J.D.
- Wesleyan University, B.A.
Representations
Mr. Marenberg’s recent high-profile engagements include the following:
- Representing ABC and Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation in a nationwide series of cases raising constitutional challenges to The Walt Disney Company’s enforcement of its Vaccine Mandate during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Representing Shein Distribution Corporation, the hugely successful online fast fashion platform in a federal district court RICO action raising allegations of criminal copyright infringement.
- Representing one of the leading streaming platforms in a multi-million dollar dispute over a rival’s failure to deliver motion pictures for streaming under an output agreement
- Representing Jimmy Donaldson (p/k/a “MrBeast), the world’s leading YouTube creator (with over 250 million subscribers to his channel) in a $100 million contract and business tort lawsuit relating to Donaldson’s endorsement contracts
- Marenberg represented United Talent Agency, one of the “Big-3” Hollywood talent agencies, in the highly publicized dispute between the Writers Guild of America and the agencies, including in federal court litigation raising antitrust, RICO, labor, and business tort issues.
- Represented Universal Music Group in several landmark copyright infringement lawsuits concerning the legality of displaying and distributing copyrighted music videos on “user-generated content” websites and the scope of the safe harbors of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act for such activities.
- Represented NBCUniversal and Legendary Entertainment in the defense of a class action alleging the studios’ text messaging campaign to promote the motion picture, Warcraft, violated various provisions of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
- Represented Warner Bros. Entertainment in a well-publicized class action alleging that the studios have failed to account properly for the exploitation of motion pictures in home video and video-on-demand markets.
- Represented Activision in a multi-billion lawsuit relating to the development and profits from the best-selling Call of Duty video game series.
- Represented a well-known consulting firm in a series of multiparty business tort actions arising out of a highly publicized credit card data security and privacy breach.
Other representative matters include:
- Represented acclaimed writer and director Peter Jackson in a dispute with New Line Pictures concerning Mr. Jackson’s profit participation for the blockbuster The Lord of the Rings trilogy of motion pictures.
- Represented Pixar Animation Studios in the successful defense of several copyright actions alleging characters and story elements in Pixar motion pictures such as Onward, The Incredibles, Monster's Inc. and Finding Nemo infringed on third party rights.
- Successfully prosecuted, on behalf of Walt Disney Pictures, a trademark infringement action of Disney’s rights in the motion picture Frozen.
- Represented Universal Music Group before the Supreme Court of California in a landmark case defining the scope of attorney-client privilege in California (HLC Properties v. UMG Recordings, Inc.).
- Represented Rosenfeld, Meyer & Susman in the landmark decision establishing the right to summary disposition motions in California arbitrations (Schlessinger v. Rosenfeld Meyer & Susman)..
- Represented Dove Audio in a landmark case defining the scope of California’s anti-SLAPP statute.
- Defended Mark Burnett against copyright infringement claims involving the NBC television series The Apprentice and Mr. Burnett in an arbitration over his rights in the CBS series Survivor.
- Defended a leading video game publisher in a series of RICO and commercial bribery suits involving rights to the highly successful WWE video game series.
Engagement & Publications
- Lectured at many professional seminars, including the ABA Litigation Section Annual Meeting, the ABA Forum on Sports and Entertainment Law Annual Meeting, the PLI Antitrust Institute, and the USC Entertainment Law Institute.