Samuel M. Bayard

Partner

T 212.603.6489 New York
I help creative people make and defend awesome content.
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Sam Bayard is a media and intellectual-property attorney with a strong commitment to his clients' freedom of speech and creativity. He works with production companies, networks, streaming services, studios, podcasters, print and digital publishers, and other content creators to find how the law supports their creative visions, rather than standing as an obstacle to them. He gets excited about good content and fights for it tirelessly, whether in the courtroom or in the legal review process.

Sam provides counseling and content review to clients as they acquire, develop, produce, distribute, and promote a wide array of content, from scripted and unscripted television shows, to feature films and news programming. Clients look to Sam for help with high-risk content, including docudramas, documentaries and docuseries, and variety/comedy shows that rely heavily on fair use.

When claims arise, Sam defends his clients' rights effectively, responding to claims and litigating copyright, defamation, right-of-publicity, and other content-related cases across the country. He also taps into DWT's full service platform to assist his clients with production legal, employment, advertising, trademark, chain of title and other issues and works with foreign lawyers to advise clients on the international issues that arise from global distribution.

Practice Highlights

Claims response and litigation

Sam responds to claim letters on behalf of his content-creator clients and represents them in high-profile libel, copyright, privacy, and right-of-publicity litigation and amicus efforts. Representative cases include defending Amazon Studios in a copyright infringement claim against "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," and obtaining dismissal for Showtime Networks of right-of-publicity and Lanham Act claims brought by Bobby Brown over the documentary "Whitney: Can I Be Me." He also defended Rolling Stone magazine in a high-profile libel trial over its reporting on an alleged gang rape at the University of Virginia, and Getty Images in a copyright trial over photographs of the Haitian earthquake of 2010. Sam also handles responses to subpoenas seeking confidential source and other newsgathering materials

Documentaries, docuseries, and docudramas

Sam provides libel and fair-use review for challenging documentaries, docuseries, and docudramas, helping content creators achieve their creative and editorial goals while retaining strong legal defenses. Representative projects include "Billie Eilish: The World's A Little Blurry," "The Velvet Underground," "Murder in the Bayou," "Broken: Jeffrey Epstein," "The First 48," "Dark Side of the Ring," and "Escape at Dannemora."

Comedy/variety shows

Sam has provided counseling, content review, and fair-use advice to some of the most beloved and boundary-pushing comedy/variety shows, like "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver," "Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj," "The Daily Show," "The Colbert Report," "The Chris Gethard Show," and "Problem Areas with Wyatt Cenac."