Rip has extensive experience with entertainment industry transactions across all media from motion pictures, television, branded and event based entertainment, music, book publishing and character licensing to a variety of Internet, digital, and emerging media applications.  Among other stake holders, he works with production companies, networks, financiers, distributors and advertising and media agencies.  He counsels clients in the planning stages of rights acquisition through development, production and distribution.  In addition to a broad transactional and project based entertainment practice, Rip also represents and negotiates agreements on behalf of individual artists and executives, including talent and endorsement agreements, as well as executive employment agreements.  Before joining the firm, Rip served as Senior Counsel at Columbia Pictures where his areas of responsibility included music publishing, film financing and international motion picture and television distribution.

Rip was listed in the 2010 and 2011 editions of the New York Super Lawyers/ Manhattan Edition, among 5% of Manhattan Attorneys.  Rip co-authored a chapter on licensing intellectual property in Business & Legal Primer for Game Development, 2007.  He is a member of the New York State Bar Association Entertainment and Sports Law Section and the Association of Media and Entertainment Counsel on which he has served on the law firm advisory board. Rip received an A.B. from Cornell University with Distinction, a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law, and he became a member of the New York State Bar in 1986.

Representative Work:

• Production counsel for a variety of audiovisual works including:
  • Live Event and Unscripted Reality Programming;
  • Music Television Performance Specials and Series;
  • Feature Films;
  • Documentaries; and
  • Scripted Television.
• Counsel and advice to media agencies including structure, finance and distribution for branded entertainment projects.
• Live Event distribution including online streaming and HD satellite theatrical licensing.
• Financing and distribution arrangements including international co-production. 
• Structure and negotiation of television and theatrical motion picture development, production and distribution on behalf of writers, producers and performers from rights acquisition through production and delivery. 
• Corporate entertainment transactions including sales and acquisitions of entertainment companies and establishment of joint venture arrangements. 
• New media/digital exploitation and internet applications including catalog licensing and legal analysis of proposed applications. 
• Talent endorsement agreements. 
• Representation of authors for book publishing, television and film writing. 
• Music label representation including production, distribution and artist signings.
• Representation of on-air talent and producers for cable and network news. 
• Character development, licensing and acquisition.