Anthony A. LoPresti
Press/Media/Blog:
http://www.anthonylopresti.com/
Anthony A. LoPresti, Esq., Partner, managed the New York firm Davidson & LoPresti, LLP for several years before forming Meltzer LoPresti, LLP. Mr. LoPresti practices in all areas of civil and commercial litigation, with a focus in corporate law and business transactions, international law, entertainment, media & intellectual property. Mr. LoPresti has represented diversified clients ranging from transportation and construction companies, international trading, textile and fashion concerns, investment groups, start-ups and joint ventures and a publicly traded tech company, to entertainment, new media, marketing and e-commerce companies, magazines, photographers, artists, actors and writers, to trendy restaurants and gourmet food markets. In addition, he has managed numerous cases concerning foreign and international law, involving unique forums such as Germany (tort and contract), China (import/export), and South Korea (import/export and high tech investment).
In administrative, regulatory and constitutional law, Mr. LoPresti has represented both private and not-for-profit entities, as well as elected local officials and members of Congress, often on a pro bono basis, to oppose numerous entities that have exceeded their authority, such as: the FCC and Environmental Protection Agency (cellular phone radiation guidelines), the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (oil & gas development), the City Counsel of New York, the New York State Department of Transportation and the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission (denials of licensing and regulatory issues), the New York State Thruway Authority (obstruction of railroad right of way and Rail Trail nature conservancy), the County of Ulster and City of Kingston, New York (oppressive taxation), the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey (building & fire code compliance as to the site of the future World Trade Center and other Port Authority properties), and the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (fare increase). Such representation has resulted in various cases of note, reported in case law reports, legal publications and local and national press.
Mr. LoPresti, in his own right, has considerable experience in the business world as both an entrepreneur and consultant. Mr. LoPresti formed and managed several production, new media and e-commerce companies in New York, undertaking various multimedia and entertainment projects developing skills in tech, multimedia, e-commerce and new media technologies. As a business consultant he has been hired to draft numerous business plans, proposals and offering statements for small and medium, domestic and international companies, and to perform due diligence assessments and reviews, for a multitude of diverse industries.
Mr. LoPresti earned his B.A. from Brooklyn College, and his Juris Doctorate from New York Law School, where he was a member of the New York Law School Journal of Human Rights, and where his article “Creating An Affirmative Duty To Achieve Economic Security and Safeguard Human Rights Through the United Nations”, was selected for publication. While at New York Law, Mr. LoPresti also pursued studies at the University of London and the University of Exeter, England, where he studied European Community Law and International Business Transactions. Honors and awards include the Professor Lung-Chu Chen Award for Excellence in the Field of Human Rights (NYLS, 1996) and the Common Cause “Holding Power Accountable Award” (2003) which lauded Mr. LoPresti as “a distinguished attorney who was one of the lead litigants challenging the closed door policies of the MTA. Through this lawsuit, Mr. LoPresti has helped promote a more open, honest and accountable democracy in New York State.”
Mr. LoPresti is admitted to practice in both the Federal and State courts of New York and Colorado.
Anthony LoPresti / www.anthonylopresti.com
Mike Sword
Mike Sword represents clients in all manner of transactions in the entertainment, media and personal branding industries. Mike counsels producers, directors, writers, managers, agents, rights owners and performing talent with respect to a wide variety of dealings in the fields of television, film, music, broadband, publishing, radio, personal branding, sponsorship, talent management, merchandising, theatre, live entertainment and fashion.
A particular area of emphasis in Mike’s practice involves advising clients involved in the creation, production and sale of reality/non-fiction content for television and broadband media. Additionally, Mike has extensive experience representing on-camera performing talent in the television industry, helping his clients manage their media careers and strategically extend their personal brands across a variety of media and capitalize on related business opportunities.
Mike also regularly represents filmmakers with respect to the development, financing, production and exploitation of feature films and scripted television programs. Recent deals include projects for which Mike served as executive producer: Gerald “Gee Bee” Barclay’s award-winning documentary, Wu: The Story of the Wu-Tang Clan, and the upcoming independent feature, The Dissection of Thanksgiving, starring Kathleen Quinlan.
Another significant element of Mike’s practice involves providing counsel to music producers, composers, songwriters, musicians and engineers, crossing all categories from Hip-Hop and rock to classical and Broadway, as well as to concert promoters, music publishers, record labels, personal management companies. Mike has successfully negotiated recording contracts, publishing deals, concert engagements and personal management agreements, as well as licensing agreements and music clearances. He has significant experience in helping both creative artists and music companies structure and manage their business affairs to fully protect their rights and maximize their ability to profit from their endeavors.
A sampling of Mike’s media clients include Emmy-award winning television producer and host Gordon Elliott (Follow That Food, Paula’s Home Cooking), world renowned fashion photographers Markus Klinko & Indrani, noted private investigator and television personality Vinnie Parco (Parco P.I.), and respected genre filmmaker Tim Cox (Mammoth, Larva, Alien Lockdown). Mike also handles all legal and business affairs matters for Follow Productions, Inc., a leading supplier of lifestyle television content.
Over the past few years, Mike has advised clients in dealings with, among others, CBS, HBO, NBC, Food Network, Fine Living Network, Fox Reality Channel, QVC, MTV, VH1, Spike TV, Discovery Channel, Nickelodeon, Sci Fi Channel, The Tennis Channel, TWI/IMG Media, Paramount Pictures, New Line Entertainment, Dimension Films, The Weinstein Company, Lionsgate Films, Sirius Satellite Radio, XM Radio, Threshold Entertainment, SonyBMG, Interscope Records, Motown, EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Publishing, Capitol Records, Warner Music Group, Curb Music, Universal Music Group, Decca Records, Radiculture Records, The Royal National Theatre, Rockstar Games/Take Two Interactive, Midway Games, Bugle Boy, Ozzy Osbourne/Ozzfest, Snoop Dogg, Cee-Lo Green, Nas, Dr. Dre, The Pharcyde, Fabolous, Matchbox Twenty, Aerosmith, and Phish.
In addition to practicing law, Mike operates Sword Entertainment Holdings LLC, through which he develops television, movie and other media projects. The company specializes in developing remakes of vintage film and television properties. Current projects include “re-imagined” feature film versions of the cult science fiction/horror franchise, C.H.U.D., as well as the classic television show, The Space Giants, via a partnership with Lakeside TV Co.
Recently, Mike spent two years on the Board of Directors for Inside Broadway, a not-for-profit group that provides cultural opportunities and educational entertainment for New York City schoolchildren.
Mike began his career in the New York office of Proskauer Rose LLP as a member of the firm’s corporate department and entertainment law group. He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Virginia, as well as a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law.
Stephen Markman
Background & Education
Born and raised in New York City, Mr. Markman attended Tulane University in New Orleans, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science (with honors) with a minor in History (with honors) in 1993.
Mr. Markman attended law school at New York Law School where he received his Juris Doctorate degree in 1996.
Awards & Honors
Mr. Markman was the New York State Bar Association’s 1996 recipient of the Committee on Legal Education & Admission to the Bar’s Law Student Legal Ethics Award.
Legal Experience
His legal experience is diverse. Mr. Markman clerked for now-retired Supreme Court Justice Clifford A. Scott and worked for the New York County District Attorney’s Office and for renowned litigator, Barry I. Slotnick.
More recently, Mr. Markman was employed by the Law Offices of Seymour C. Hartman, where he acquired much of his expertise in the field of negligence/personal injury litigation.
In September, 1999, Mr. Markman opened the Law Offices of Stephen R. Markman, designed to be a full-service family practice. Placing emphasis on his relationships with his clients, the practice aims to handle all legal matters that may arise for his clients.
Mr. Markman has also served as am instructor in Continuing Legal Education, instructing other attorneys and members of the judiciary on Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility, Appeals and Appellate procedures, Surrogates Court practice for the negligence attorney and Trail Practice.