Corporate
September 16, 2008
John Schulman Announces Retirement From Warner Bros. Entertainment After Illustrious 25-Year Run As The Studio’s General Counsel
(September 16, 2008 – Burbank, CA) – Long-time Warner Bros. Entertainment Executive Vice President & General Counsel John Schulman has announced today that he is retiring after a 25-year career at the Studio.
One of the most respected attorneys in the entertainment industry today, Schulman joined Warner Bros. in 1984 as Vice President & General Counsel, charged with building the Studio’s in-house legal department. In 1989, he was promoted to Senior Vice President & General Counsel, and he has served as Executive Vice President & General Counsel since 1991.
“Warner Bros. has been my home for a quarter of a century, and it would be disingenuous for me to portray this as anything other than an arduous decision,” said Schulman. “Many years ago, I was given the task of creating, staffing and building what has turned out to be what I believe is the best legal department in our industry, and dare I say, one of the best in any industry. I am honored to have been a part of this company at a time of rapid change and challenge, but I am truly ready to begin the next chapter and look forward to the new adventures that lie ahead. I thank all my colleagues, both past and present, who have made my time at Warner Bros. not only enjoyable, but something I can truly be proud of.”
“There are very few people who become forces in our industry. John Schulman is one of them,” said Barry M. Meyer, Chairman & CEO, Warner Bros. “There are also few executives in our industry with a heart as big as John’s. He is a terrific lawyer, strong advocate, a dedicated and generous philanthropist, and a great friend. Everyone at Warner Bros. will miss John. We all wish him well in this next chapter of his career.”
Schulman has been involved in the legal aspects of Warner Bros. since he graduated law school. At the first law firm he worked, Kaplan, Livingston, Goodwin, Berkowitz and Selvin, one of his first Warner Bros. assignments was handling some of the litigation and negotiations regarding the Superman franchise and first “Superman” movies. He spent the next nine years taking on more and more Warner Bros. work. In 1981, he became a founding partner of the law firm then known as Weissman, Wolff, Bergman, Coleman & Schulman, where he continued to serve as Warner Bros.’ primary outside litigation counsel.
Schulman currently serves on the boards of directors for Bet Tzedek Legal Services and the Wilshire Boulevard Temple and is a trustee of the Southwestern School of Law. He’s a former member of the boards of directors of California Legal Corps, the Constitutional Rights Foundation and the Youth Law Center; he is also a former member of the board of trustees of the Center for Early Education. He has served as a lecturer at UCLA School of Law, USC School of Law, Southwestern School of Law, and as a guest lecturer at his alma mater, University of California, Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law.
In 1998, the Beverly Hills Bar Association’s Entertainment Law Section named Schulman Lawyer of the Year, in recognition of his long and distinguished record of service at Warner Bros. and for his devotion to pro bono work, charitable and civic causes. # # #