Practice Areas

  • Entertainment
  • Copyright
  • First Amendment
  • Slander & Libel
  • Right of Publicity
  • Insurance

Education

  • Harvard Law School, Cambridge, 1977, J.D.
  • Harvard University, 1974, B.A.
    • cum laude

Admissions

  • 9th Circuit, 5th Circuit, California, Central and Northern District; New York, Southern and Eastern District.
  • Litigated on a national basis, including in Chicago, New York, Nashville, Phoenix, Eastern District of Texas, and Albuquerque.

Contact

2049 Century Park East
Suite 3110
Los Angeles, CA 90067

Email:
Phone: 310-277-3333
Fax: 310-277-7444
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Of Counsel

Abigail Jones

Ms. Jones handles trial and appellate work in all areas of intellectual property, as well as defamation, invasion of privacy, right of publicity, submission of ideas and contract claims.  She also provides advice before release, publication, or Internet posting, as to possible liability issues in scripts, books, and dramatic works.  She has also negotiated complex multi-million dollar settlements.

Her clients have included major movie studios and recording companies, as well as creators of reality shows and “webisodes,” filmmakers, writers, and directors. She is retained as defense counsel by many media E&O insurance carriers.

Prior to joining Leopold, Petrich & Smith, Ms. Jones litigated at O’Melveny & Myers in Los Angeles and Davis Polk & Wardwell in New York.

In addition, Ms. Jones prosecuted white collar fraud for the New York Special Prosecutor’s Office and served as a law clerk to renowned civil rights leader United States District Court Judge Constance Baker Motley (S.D.N.Y). http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9521990.

Selected Experience:

Copyright and Intellectual Property:

  • Successful jury trial verdict in the Eastern District of Texas for defendant Lions Gate Entertainment against claims of copyright infringement and state law claims arising from the Tyler Perry film, Diary of A Mad Black Woman.  The Fifth Circuit affirmed the jury verdict, copyright jury instructions and the order that the plaintiff to pay to Lions Gate certain of its trial costs.  West v. Perry,  2010 WL 3303752 (5th Cir. 2010)
  • Judgment on the Pleadings granted for lack of substantial similarity on copyright claim concerning the animated film Cars.  Campbell v. Disney Co., 2010 WL 2489189 (N.D. CA. 2010)

First Amendment and Constitutional Litigation:

  • Appellate court affirmed grant of demurrer on ground that  First Amendment barred claims against  director John Singleton and Columbia Pictures alleging that  Boyz N The Hood contributed to gang violence in theaters.  Lewis v. Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., 1994 WL 758666 (Cal. App. 1994).
  • Successful First Amendment defense to celebrity’s attempt to enjoin media publication of paparazzi shots of him in street altercation.
  • Successful  challenge to St. Louis statute prohibiting the sale of “sex inciting” devices.  Postscript Enterprises, Inc. v. Whaley,  658 F.2d 1249 (8th Cir. 1981) (amicus for ACLU)

Right of Publicity

  • Defense of entertainment distributor against right of publicity claims brought by Sandra Bullock, Michelle Pfeiffer, Cameron Diaz, Mandy Moore, Kate Hudson and Diane Keaton.
  • Represented Shirley Temple Black against use of her name on Shirley Temple beverage.

Internet and Video Games

  • Counseling for website literary enterprise as to necessary scope of releases to be obtained from writers.
  • Analysis of copyright issues arising from alleged use of video game elements in film.

Reality Shows and  Performances

  • Defended against claim of theft of ideas for reality show.
  • Counseling as to prevention of reality show contestant claims, including for emotional distress.
  • First Amendment freedom of expression challenge to restriction on types of performance art based on alleged performer safety issues.

Advance “vetting” of material before release or publication

  • Counseling before release, publication or Internet posting of controversial memoir, feature films, bio pics, cartoons, television shows,  and Internet “webisodes.”

Insurance, financial and accounting litigation

  • Defended disputes over movie Profit Participation Statements and music royalty statements.
  • Defense of Big 5 accounting firm against simultaneous class action securities suit, accounting malpractice claims, and investigations by  Congress, the IRS and the SEC.
  • Served as national coverage counsel for Insurance Company of North America/CIGNA.  See e.g. Montrose Chemical Corp. v. Admiral Ins. Co., 10 Cal.4th 645, 913 P.2d 878 (1995) (Landmark decision on continuous trigger of coverage in CGL policies) (Amicus)
  • Successful appellate defense upholding rejection of class action suit against financial institution’s fee structure. California Grocers Assn. v. Bank of America, 22 Cal.App.4 th 205, 27 Cal.Rptr.2d 396 (1994). 
  • Judgment on the pleadings for recording company against songwriter/producer’s claims of implied and equitable  indemnity arising out of music copyright action.

White Collar Criminal Prosecution and Defense

  • Prosecuted and defended white-collar cases involving financial fraud. 

Professional Activity:

  • New York State Bar Association; California Bar Association, Intellectual Property Section; Los Angeles County Bar Association, Entertainment Law and Intellectual Property and Litigation Sections; California Lawyers for the Arts; Association of Business Trial Lawyers; American Bar Association, Women in Communications Subcommittee; NY Bar Intellectual Property and Entertainment, Arts and Sports sections.
  • Mystery Writers of America, associate member
  • Los Angeles Writers and Poets Collective