Cliff Fluet > Lewis Silkin > London, England > Lawyer Profile

Often instructed by studios, producers and broadcasters, the film and TV practice at Lewis Silkin is active in both contentious and non-contentious matters. On the consulting front, the group is skilled in financing, exploitation and production issues, and draws on the firm’s strong employment and immigration team to advise broadcast media companies on investigations. On the contentious side, the team particularly shines in IP protection and enforcement, as well as privacy issues, defamation and commercial disputes. Led by Cliff Fluet and Russell Brimelow, the media team also includes Phil Rymer, a name to note for commercial and legal issues related to the film industry, and Neil Parkes, who represents broadcasters, studios and production companies in both contractual and IP disputes.

The music department at Lewis Silkin continues to evolve with the industry itself, focusing on new technologies and digital. AI plays an important role in the firm’s practice, which excels in advising advising AI music companies and Web3 players on the use of AI, digital goods, tokens, AR and VR. The practice is retained by a diverse client roster comprised of labels, publishers, performing rights organisations, digital platforms, agents, streaming services and multi-channel networks, who turn to the team for assistance with copyright ownership and infringement disputes, catalogue acquisitions, live performance issues and joint ventures. Practice leader Cliff Fluet is the go-to lawyer for advice on AI, blockchain, NFTs, immersive entertainment and the metaverse. Jeremy Summers is a key contact for IP-related issues, while David Deakin assists with interactive entertainment and digital content matters. Lauren Stone is proficient in rights clearances for live events, the negotiation of talent contracts for awards shows, and also assists labels and publishers with securing rights for marketing campaigns. Michael Szlesinger focuses on music disputes, including infringements concerning copyright ownership, chain of title, and recording rights.

Lewis Silkin‘s social media and digital content practice provides commercial, IP, regulatory and employment advice to major global streamers and social media platforms. The group is also well placed to advise talent – both influencers and creators – on key contractual and regulatory issues. Music expert Cliff Fluet and commercial and IP specialist Alan Hunt jointly lead the wider group. Brinsley Dresden oversees the advertising and marketing team alongside Geraint Lloyd-Taylor, who also heads up the regulatory group.

Hailed for being ‘super responsive’ and ‘very diligent’, Lewis Silkin has vast expertise in IP ownership and infringement issues, generative AI-based matters, and corporate transactions within the AI space. The firm’s reach is broad, representing both start-ups and multinational corporations, with Oxford-based co-head James Davies being highly knowledgeable on the intersection between employment law and AI. The other three co-leads, Cliff Fluet, Bryony Long, and Ali Vaziri are all London-based, each bringing vast insight into AI policies and procedures to the outfit, alongside copyright infringement and data privacy knowledge. Tarun Tawakley and Alexander Milner-Smith are both additionally cited as key contacts.