Christopher Brearton
Partner
Christopher Brearton is the managing partner of O'Melveny’s Century City office and a member of the Entertainment, Sports, and Media Practice.
Christopher primarily advises motion picture studios, independent producers, financial institutions and investment funds, television networks, and sports organizations. He has counseled clients in transactions ranging from the creation of strategic alliances, complex commercial licensing arrangements, project financing, and industry-specific mergers and acquisitions.
Prior to joining O’Melveny, Christopher spent several years as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with KPMG in Los Angeles.
Christopher has been recognized as a leading lawyer in numerous publications in both the entertainment and sports fields. He was recently named to the
SportsBusiness Journal's annual "Forty Under 40" list of the most promising young executives in the sports business. He was also featured in
Variety's annual "Dealmakers Impact Report" on influential individuals in the entertainment business.
Christopher was selected by
The Los Angeles Business Journal as a member of "Who's Who in the Entertainment Industry: The Next Generation.” He was also named a
Legal500 recommended lawyer in the categories of
Media, Technology and Telecoms and
Film, Music & Television and named a leading lawyer by
Chambers in Media and Entertainment Transactional Law.
Illustrative Professional Experience
Strategic Alliances / Mergers & Acquisitions
- Represented a leading private investment firm in connection with acquiring its interest and a stake in Spyglass Entertainment
- Represented Soros Fund Management in connection with its acquisition of the DreamWorks film library
Complex Licensing Arrangements
- Represented DreamWorks Animation in connection with its overall multi-year, multi-picture distribution arrangement with Paramount Pictures
- Represented Metro Goldwyn Mayer Inc. in connection with a multi-year, multi-picture distribution arrangement with Twentieth Century Fox
Motion Picture Project Financing
- Represented Metro Goldwyn Mayer Inc. in the formation and leveraged financing of United Artists Entertainment LLC, a partnership between MGM and Tom Cruise
- Represented Participant Media in connection with the formation of a US$250 million leveraged film fund with Imagenation Abu Dhabi and JP Morgan
Sports
Represents the
International Olympic Committee in connection with the licensing of broadcast and new media rights across the world
Represented the San Francisco Giants in connection with its acquisition of an ownership stake in the San Francisco area regional sports network and a related multi-year broadcast license agreement
Represented Univision Communications, Inc. in its acquisition of broadcast and new media rights for the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup
Represented Qwest Communications in connection with its stadium naming rights agreement with the Seattle Seahawks
Professional Activities
Counsel Member, The Motion Picture and Television Fund: Next Generation Counsel
Member, Beverly Hills Bar Association; Sports Lawyers Association
Speaker, "Entering Hollywood and Beyond: Paving the Way for Outside Investors," National Investment Community’s Forum on Entertainment Finance (October 2006)
Awards, Named to
SportsBusiness Journal and
SportsBusiness Daily’s "Forty Under 40" list recognizing the most promising young executives in sports business under the age of 40 (2010); named a
Legal500 recommended lawyer for Media, Technology and Telecoms: Film, Music and TV (2008); named a leader by
Chambers in Media and Entertainment Transactional Law (2009); named a
Variety "Up Next" Dealmaker (2009); named a "Rising Star" in a survey conducted by Law & Politics Media Inc. and published in
Los Angeles magazine (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010)