Susan Rabin | Of Counsel

Susan Rabin is a seasoned entertainment and intellectual property attorney with more than two decades of experience advising production companies, studios, and creative enterprises on high-value, high-risk transactions and disputes. As Of Counsel to the firm, she provides strategic guidance on complex entertainment matters where rights management, deal structure, and long-term risk mitigation are critical.

Susan’s practice spans the full lifecycle of film, television, and music projects from entity formation and financing through rights acquisition, production, and distribution. She has served as production counsel on feature films and routinely advises on chain of title, talent and crew agreements, guild compliance, insurance, music clearance and supervision, and distribution arrangements. Her work reflects a deep understanding of how legal decisions made early in a project directly impact enforceability, leverage, and downstream exposure.

In addition to transactional work, Susan advises on copyright and trademark disputes and enforcement, drawing on her practical industry experience to align legal strategy with business realities. She has also consulted with major entertainment companies, including Universal Pictures, bringing studio-level insight to independent and boutique matters.

Susan is widely recognized for her leadership in the entertainment law community. She has been named a Southern California Super Lawyer for six consecutive years and currently chairs the Entertainment Section of the Beverly Hills Bar Association, where she moderates seminars on emerging industry and legal issues. She is also a frequent educator, having taught entertainment and copyright law at multiple institutions, including the University of San Francisco School of Law, Golden Gate University School of Law, and the University of West Los Angeles School of Law.

Practice Areas

Civil Litigation

• Civil litigation and civil defense
• Business law, and litigation

Entertainment Law and Litigation

• Entertainment, music publishing, and newspaper contracts
• Entertainment liability
• Artist rights and contracts
• Entertainment and motion picture financing
• Motion picture and production, distribution
• Entertainment syndication
• Interactive multimedia law
• Music publishing, licensing and syndication
• Publishing rights
• Art law
• Trade secret misappropriation

Trademark Law and Litigation

• Trademark licensing and registration
• Trademark infringement, protection, and litigation
• Internet trademarks

Copyright Law and Litigation

• Copyright licensing and registration
• Copyright infringement, protection, and litigation
• Internet copyrights

Sports Law and Litigation

• Sports contracts and licensing
• Sports facilities development
• Sports injuries
• Sports Marketing Law

Professional Associations & Memberships

• Beverly Hills Bar Association Board of Governors
• Beverly Hills Bar Association, Executive Committee, Entertainment Section
• Los Angeles Copyright Society
• California Copyright Conference
• Association of Independent Music Publishers
• American Bar Association Committee on Entertainment
• USC/BHBA Symposium on Entertainment/Syllabus Committee

Industry Awards & Recognitions

• Chair 2009–2010: Entertainment Law Section, Beverly Hills Bar Association
• Co-Chair 2008–2009: Entertainment Law Section, Beverly Hills Bar Association
• Super Lawyer 2006–2011: Law & Politics/LA Magazine
• Vice President 1993–1999: Board of Governors, NARAS. San Francisco
• Marin Arts Council Playwriting Grant 1999
• Chair 1992–1998: Entertainment Law Section, Bar Association of San Francisco

Publications

• The Role of Production Counsel in Independent Film (October 2008). Los Angeles Lawyer
• Authorship Issues in Entertainment Contracts (May 2006). Los Angeles Lawyer
• Contracts of Adhesion (February 2006). Los Angeles Lawyer
• Creating Independent Record Labels (June 2005). Los Angeles Lawyer
• Public Performance of Music (April 2005). All Access Magazine

Teaching

• University of West Los Angeles School of Law, Los Angeles
• University of San Francisco Law School, San Francisco CA
• San Francisco State University, San Francisco CA
• Golden Gate University School of Law, San Francisco CA
• Monterey College of the Law, Monterey CA
• Courses in Legal Aspects of the Entertainment Industry, Copyright, Contract Law, Film Production Agreements, Music Publishing, Recording Agreements, Trademark, Digital Rights, Compliance with Guild Agreements

Workshops

• Protecting, Enforcing Publishing Rights (May 2010). LAWIM. Los Angeles
• Clearing Music Rights for Film and TV (February 2010). Beverly Hills Barristers. Beverly Hills
• Setting Up an Independent Record Label (2000). CA Lawyers for the Arts. San Francisco

Education

J.D., Golden Gate University School of Law
M.A., Broadcasting, Northwestern University
B.S., Speech/Theatre, Northwestern University
A.S., Music, City College of San Francisco

Admissions

State of California