Bernard M. Resnick, Esq., P.C. is a full-service entertainment, communications and sports law firm headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Our two attorneys, Bernard M. "Bernie" Resnick and Priscilla J. "Sally" Mattison, have combined experience of over twenty-five years in the entertainment industry. As a result of an extensive and confidential peer review by members of the Bar, our firm has been awarded the prestigious "AV" rating from LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell.

BERNARD M. RESNICK, ESQ.

Bernard M. Resnick, Esq. is an entertainment attorney practicing in Philadelphia, PA, USA.  He has worked in the entertainment industry for over twenty years.  His firm, Bernard M. Resnick, Esq., P.C. has earned over 50 gold, platinum, multi-platinum, Billboard #1 and/or BDS Certified Spin awards for deals the firm has negotiated and drafted on behalf of the firm's clients, representing sales of over 55,000,000 records. 

The firm's clientele ranges across many styles and genres of talent, encompassing recording artists, songwriters, record producers, agents, managers, filmmakers, financiers, internet website designers and operators, professional athletes, etc.  Clients of the firm vary from "baby bands" and neophyte filmmakers to gold and platinum-selling recording artists, producers & songwriters, Grammy award winners, members of the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame, record labels, international entertainment businesses and publicly-traded companies.  The firm regularly places client music in television programs, movies, and video games.

Mr. Resnick has recently co-authored three chapters in "The Musicians Business and Legal Guide - 4th Edition", published by Prentice Hall for the Beverly Hills Bar Association.  Mr. Resnick previously co-authored the chapter entitled "Labor Relations in Professional Sports" for McGraw-Hill's graduate-level textbook entitled "The Management of Sport: Its Foundation of Application", 4th Ed..

In the past year, Mr. Resnick has participated on panel discussions, presented seminars and conducted continuing legal education classes for the Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University; the Texas State Bar Association's Annual Entertainment Law Institute; the Independent Music Conference; the Cutting Edge Music Conference; the Beverly Hills Bar Association; Widener University School of Law's Annual Sports and Entertainment Law Association Symposium; and the International Association of Entertainment Lawyers at the MIDEM/MIDEMNet convention in Cannes, France.  He frequently serves as an expert witness in entertainment and sports-related lawsuits, and has been named as a "Pennsylvania Superlawyer" by Philadelphia Magazine/Law & Politics Magazine for the past 5 years. He has recently been named as a member of the Villanova Law Sports & Entertainment Law Journal Advisory Board of Directors.  Mr. Resnick is also a musician, songwriter, record producer, music publisher and manager.

PRISCILLA J. MATTISON, ESQ.

Attorney Priscilla J. (“Sally”) Mattison is a transactional lawyer representing a variety of clients in the entertainment field.  Her clients have included recording artists, songwriters, record producers, record labels, managers, booking agencies, filmmakers, screenwriters, and others.

A graduate of Yale University, Ms. Mattison was also the recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship to study Communications at the Technical University of Berlin and earned a Certificate in Producing from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles.  Before attending law school, she worked in the film and television industries in New York and Los Angeles in numerous capacities ranging from director to co-producer to casting director and more.  Ms. Mattison began her law studies at the University of California, Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law, where she was selected for the California Law Review and received a Moot Court Advocacy Award.  She then transferred to the University of Pennsylvania Law School, from which she received her JD.  After graduating, Ms. Mattison practiced complex commercial litigation with the Philadelphia firm Harkins Cunningham and served as Staff Attorney for Clean Air Council, a regional environmental nonprofit organization, before joining Bernard M. Resnick, Esq., P.C. in 2000.

Ms. Mattison has taught Business Law at the Art Institute of Philadelphia, and Music Business Management at Cabrini College/KAJEM Recording Arts Program.  She has given guest lectures on the entertainment industry to students at Penn State University’s Dickinson School of Law, Albright College, and Temple University’s Boyer College of Music and Dance; to attendees of the Algonquin Film Festival; and to members of the Music and Entertainment Industry Educators Association.  Most recently she lectured on  life story rights agreements at a Continuing Legal Education seminar hosted by Widener University School of Law’s Sports and Entertainment Law Association, and spoke about artist management at an International Association of Entertainment Lawyers workshop held as part of the International Manager Summit at MIDEM 2008. 

Ms. Mattison is a member of the bars of Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia as well as the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.  She belongs to the Philadelphia Bar Association, the International Association of Entertainment Lawyers, and New York Women In Film & Television; is an associate member of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc.; and holds both writer and publisher memberships in BMI.   

Ms. Mattison is listed in Marquis Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in American Law and was selected as a Pennsylvania Rising Star by Super Lawyers magazine in 2005, 2006 and 2007.

Firm Services

Our firm concentrates on transactional work in various facets of the entertainment industry. Examples of the types of contracts that we have solicited, negotiated and/or drafted for our clients include:

Music Industry: Major label recording agreements, independent label recording agreements, international licensing agreements, production agreements, producer agreements, recording studio agreements, work for hire agreements, distribution agreements, music publishing agreements, music publishing administration agreements, "shopping" agreements, artist management agreements, booking agency agreements, concert tour agreements, concert tour riders, merchandising agreements, celebrity endorsement agreements, side artist agreements, investment agreements.

Television Industry: Actor agreements, life story option agreements, syndication agreements, program distribution agreements (cable, broadcast and public television), writer agreements, reality show contestant agreements, game show contestant agreements, music synchronization and master use agreements, infomercial agreements.

Film Industry: Actor talent agreements, option agreements, distribution agreements, investor agreements, music supervisor agreements, music synchronization and master use agreements, director agreements, writer agreements, composer agreements, finder agreements.

Computer Industry: Website user agreements, work for hire agreements.

Sports Industry: Player-team agreements, athlete-promoter agreements, promoter licenses, celebrity endorsement agreements, athlete-agent agreements, television distribution agreements.

Book Publishing Industry: Author/publisher agreements, co-author agreements, author/agency agreements.

Fine Arts Industry: Artist/gallery agreements, art reproduction license agreements, photographer/gallery agreements, photograph reproduction agreements, album cover art agreements.

Corporate: Incorporations, fictitious name registrations, formation of limited liability companies, formation of partnerships, copyright registration, trademark and servicemark registration, partnership agreements, shareholders agreements, investor agreements, real estate leases, real estate transfers, equipment leases.

Clients

Representative current and former clients of the firm include the following:

Classical Music:

The Philadelphia Orchestra; flautist Susan Milan; The Budapest String Quartet; early music recording artists Piffaro, Ex Umbris, and Fortune's Wheel; organist Peter Richard Conte; pianist Vitalij Kuprij; and The Amernet String Quartet.

Pop/Rock/Electronic Music:

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Dave Mason; platinum award-winning recording artist The Rembrandts; multi-platinum award-winning recording artist Pink; platinum award-winning recording artist Us3; recording artists The Cuffs, Pornosonic, Blink, The Naked Apes, V.A., Peekaboo, Janita, Raje Shwari, Anthrophobia, aboyandagirl, Autumn, Pete Palladino, The Badlees, and Electron Love Theory; multi-platinum record producer Rich Gavalis (Bloodhound Gang); and record companies Chord Recordings, Tazmania Records, Metropolitan Records, Dancesport Sounds USA, DRP Records, BMP/Put It On A Disk Records, 215 Records, Krush Unit, Inc., Chocolate Fireguard Music, Ltd., Ultimae Records, and Chart Noise, Inc.

Urban Music:

Grammy ™ Award and NARAS "Impact Award" winning, multi-platinum producer and songwriter Timbaland; multi-platinum award-winning Face Off Entertainment, Inc. producer and songwriter Qur'an Goodman; gold award-winning recording artist Trina; recording artists Sincere, Garland "Sebastian" Mosley, and Peedi Peedi (formerly known as "Peedi Crakk"); platinum award-winning recordng artist "Bun B." from the group "UGK"; Grammy ™ Award nominee and multi-platinum recording artist "Beenie Man"; Pop Art Music rappers Da Youngsta's; recording artists Ram Squad, Major Figgas, Don Blaq, Oschino & Sparks, and L Myers; record producers Lonnie Jordan, Rugged Ness, Lawrence Goodman, Jae Staxx, Don Groove, Infinite Arkatechz, Collen & Webb, Saska Becker, Quincy Ledbetter of Titanium Productions, Leon "Pop Trax" Huff, II, and Billey Pettaway; and record labels RuffNation/Warner Brothers Records, Kwerk Records, Pop Art Records, and Blue Mountain Records

Songwriters and Composers:

Songwriters LaMont Flemming, Stan Stammers, John "Tommy Hill" Wilson, Troy "Boy Backs" Smith, Ebony Burks, Nolan Doran, Kaleena Harper, and Lamar "L" DeBois; the estate of the late songwriter Linda Creed; classical/jazz composer Leslie Burrs; and British music publisher Complete Music, Ltd.

Athletes:

USBA Lightweight Boxing Champion Ivan "Mighty" Robinson; Olympic medalist and IBF Bantamweight Boxing Champion Tim Austin; IBC Junior Welterweight Boxing Champion Vernon Forrest; two-time NABF Junior Flyweight Boxing Champion Eric "Lil' E" Griffin; WBU Super Featherweight Champion Angel "El Diablo" Manfredy; Junior Lightweight boxing contender Aaron Torres; professional wrestling promoter Extreme Associates ("XPW"); female Motocross Champion Stefy Bau; and various NFL players and Olympic athletes.

Television and Radio:

Nationally-syndicated public television cooking program "The Presidential Palate"; classic rock radio producer/programmer Denny Somach; DJ Cory Ak; radio and club DJ Terry "Love" Barrett; legendary radio DJ Hy Lit; and other notable celebrities and personalities.

Film:

Production companies 9.14 Pictures, Inc., MegaMace, Ltd., and LS Films, Inc.

Fine Arts:

Painter Lisa Learner, photographer Scott Weiner, photographer Stephanie Jennings.

Corporate:

Clothing store chain Forman Mills; Informercial companies Magic Media International, Inc. and Creative Products International, Inc.; medical journal Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research; publicly-traded children's television company Earthworks Entertainment, Inc.; and Internet website www.HipHopWebStop.com.