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Dan Laidman
Partner
As a former journalist I'm committed to protecting First Amendment rights.
Dan Laidman focuses his practice on media, First Amendment, and intellectual property litigation and counseling, including defamation, newsgathering, prior restraint, reporter's privilege, records and courtroom access, privacy, right-of-publicity, copyright, and trademark issues. He also advises newspaper, internet, radio, and television clients on pre-publication and pre-broadcast legal issues. Dan co-chairs the California Chapter of the Media Law Resource Center, and has served on the board of directors of the nonprofit open government group Californians Aware and on the Davis Wright Tremaine Pro Bono Committee.
Practice Highlights
Freedom of information
Represented news organizations in unsealing court records and opening closed proceedings in high-profile cases, and filing lawsuits under FOIA and the California Public Records Act.
Defamation/Anti-SLAPP
Defended journalists, authors, and media companies against libel, privacy, right-of-publicity, and newsgathering claims.
Counseling
Provided pre-publication/pre-broadcast review and advising on articles, books, TV shows, podcasts, and websites.
Los Angeles Times Communications v. State Bar of California
Representing the Los Angeles Times in a petition to the California Supreme Court to compel the State Bar to release information about its handling of complaints against scandal-plagued former attorney Tom Girardi. (Cal. Supreme Court, Ongoing)
Los Angeles Times v. Department of Homeland Security et al.
Representing the Los Angeles Times in a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has led to the production of thousands of pages of records related to allegations of harassment and abuse of detainees. (C.D. Cal., Ongoing)
Calvert v. Fox Television Stations et al.
Defended Los Angeles television station KTTV and three of its journalists in a defamation case arising from news reports about a lawsuit against a prominent plastic surgeon. The California Court of Appeal granted the news defendants' anti-SLAPP motion and dismissed all claims against them. 2022 WL 1657227 (2022)
Murphy v. King Size Productions et al.
Represented CBS Studios Inc. and King Size Productions in a trademark infringement and trade libel suit based on the alleged use of a so-called "God Helmet" device in an episode of "Evil," a fictional television program on the Paramount+ streaming platform. A U.S. District Judge in the Central District of California granted the defendants' motion to dismiss. 2022 WL 2286474 (2022)
Scallon v. CBS Broadcasting et al.
Represented CBS in an invasion of privacy and false light case arising from television news reports about local landlords and tenants affected by the Covid eviction moratoria. The court granted CBS' anti-SLAPP motion and dismissed all claims against it. (Los Angeles County (Cal.) Superior Court, 2022)
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Admitted to Practice
- California, 2010
- U.S. District Court, Central District of California, 2012
- U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit, 2011
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, 2013
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of California, 2016
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California, 2018
Education
- J.D., University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, 2010
- Order of the Coif
- Michael T. Mason Scholar
- UCLA Law Review
- B.A., History, Columbia University, 2001, with honors
- Editor-in-Chief, Columbia Daily Spectator
Professional Recognition
- Named as one of the "Best Lawyers in America" by Best Lawyers in Media Law, 2025-present
- Selected to "Southern California Rising Stars," Thomson Reuters, 2020
- Recognized as a "Trailblazer" in First Amendment, National Law Journal, 2020
- Freedom of Information Award, California News Publishers Association, 2019
- Freedom of Information Award, ACLU of Southern California, 2019
Background
- Law Clerk, Hon. Kim McLane Wardlaw, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, Pasadena, Calif., 2010-2011
- Summer Associate, Davis Wright Tremaine, Los Angeles, 2009
- Extern, National Public Radio, Washington, D.C., 2009
- Law Clerk, Housing Rights Center, Los Angeles, 2008
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Publications
01.03.22
News
Davis Wright Tremaine Promotes Highly Diverse 2022 Partnership Class Read More Publications
11.30.20
News
Media & Entertainment
Five Straight: Davis Wright Tremaine's Media and Entertainment Team Once Again Wins "Practice Group of the Year" Recognition From Law360 Read More Publications
11.18.20
News
Media & Entertainment
Dan Laidman Named a First Amendment Trailblazer by the National Law Journal Read More Court building
06.11.20
Advisories
Media & Entertainment
California Supreme Court Removes Financial Barriers to Electronic Public Records Requests Read More Copyright_Title
09.27.19
Insights
Fall 2019
The San Francisco Police Department vs. Bryan Carmody Read More 06.24.19
Presentations
Defamation, IP, Other Litigation
Panelist, "The Ever-Evolving World of Anti-SLAPP," Beverly Hills Bar Association, Los Angeles
Presentation
03.19.19
Presentations
Reporter's Privilege, Public Records & Subpoena Responses
Panelist, "Privacy vs. Public Good – How Open Should Government Be?" LA Law Library Freedom of Information Day, Los Angeles Read More 06.22.18
Presentations
Defamation, IP, Other Litigation
Panelist, "Law Enforcement Issues at the Intersection of Privacy and the PRA," Sixth Annual Seminar on the California Public Records Act, Law Seminars International, Santa Ana, Calif.
03.02.18
Presentations
Panelist, "Hot Issues in Access and Newsgathering," 23rd Annual Conference, ABA Forum on Communications Law, Napa, Calif.
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