Sheppard Mullin Expands Tech Transactions Expertise in Digital Media, Tech and Advertising

Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP is pleased to announce that Marisa Brutoco has joined the firm as a partner in the Entertainment, Technology and Advertising Practice and as a member of the Technology Transactions Team which she will co-lead. She will be based in the firm’s Orange County and Century City offices. In addition to her work at law firms, Brutoco has been in-house counsel at Google, YouTube, Amazon, GoPro, and Apple. She has handled significant technology and IP transactions and licensing deals with the sports, digital media, and news industries and worked with partners from the NBA to the White House to Disney.

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“As new technologies evolve and distribution platforms are developed, Marisa’s first-hand knowledge of those advancements is extremely valuable to our technology and digital media clients. Her ‘real world’ experience is just what our clients need and want.”

“Many of Marisa’s clients are industry leaders and she brings a wealth of in-house and outside counsel skills and experience to the group,” said Jon Newby, Sheppard Mullin’s vice chairman. “We have a robust technology transactions practice and our many digital media clients are keeping the team incredibly busy.”

Brutoco uses her years of working with some of the world’s most innovative technology companies to help provide strategic legal and business advice for her clients regarding technology, commercial and intellectual property transactions. Most recently, as a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine and previously as in-house counsel, Marisa negotiated deals for Amazon, including Prime Video sports partnerships and Fire TV to launch Apple+ and ESPN+. She was the lead lawyer for YouTube and Google Play’s sports content, where she negotiated deals with professional sports leagues and other rights holders, such as the U.S. Olympic Committee. Brutoco was also the lead attorney to launch YouTube’s live streaming platform, which included advising on content from the Red Bull Stratos jump from space to appearances by the Dalai Lama. Her other roles included serving as the director of legal and business affairs at GoPro, as the lead attorney for its entertainment and content division, and also as corporate counsel for iTunes at Apple.

Brutoco also negotiates deals related to content and technology integration with software/software as a service, mobile and online app development and distribution, live streaming, artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality (VR/AR). She also advises on related issues such as user-generated content and user data.

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She received her A.B. from Stanford University and her J.D. from Stanford Law School. In addition to her busy practice, Brutoco serves on boards at both Stanford University and Stanford Law School and has been a speaker at conferences and a guest lecturer at Stanford and other law schools on topics ranging from sports rights and technologies to business models for digital distribution.

Commenting on Brutoco’s joining, Robb Klein, leader of the firm’s Entertainment, Technology and Advertising practice, said, “As new technologies evolve and distribution platforms are developed, Marisa’s first-hand knowledge of those advancements is extremely valuable to our technology and digital media clients. Her ‘real world’ experience is just what our clients need and want.”