About

“Creativity first!”

From the very beginning, I have consistently specialized in copyright and media law. The creativity of my clients is the priority here. That creativity must be protected and promoted. The media industry follows its own laws, and I believe qualified media legal advice also requires a correspondingly high degree of specialization. Only then can I do what you expect from me and what I want to offer you.
Even during my legal internship, I chose art- and media-specific stations (media law firm, Senate Department for Cultural Affairs). Following the second state examination, I studied in the U.S. for a year in order to further my education in Anglo-American copyright and business law and, in particular, the English language (LL.M. studies, comparative law thesis on music copyright in Germany and the U.S.). I had become aware early on of the influence of Anglo-American law on the German media business, how many contracts in Germany are also written in English, and that a profound knowledge of and confidence in dealing with English legal language would be essential for my work.

I have been admitted to the bar in Germany since 1996 and as an Attorney at Law in the U.S. since 1998. After initially working as a lawyer in a media law firm specializing in copyright and media law, I founded my own media law firm in Berlin-Mitte in 1998. In 2008, I also qualified as a specialist lawyer for copyright and media law (“Fachanwalt für Urheber- und Medienrecht”). In addition to my work as a lawyer, I publish in my areas of expertise and conduct seminars and teaching assignments for the further training of lawyers and media professionals.

Furthermore, I am a certified mediator (according to § 5 para. 2 Mediation Act and § 2 para. 6 of the ZMediatAusbV) and can use the skills I acquired there profitably for my clients in negotiations and conflict resolution.

Because data protection law has played a growing role in my practice, I further qualified myself in this area (TÜV certification as a data protection officer), too, in order to be able to competently offer media law and data protection law advice from a single source.

My working languages are German and English.

I personally could have imagined working in the musical field, but I never left the amateur status and that was certainly for the better. I have seen how creative and enriching legal work can be in this area, for example, in contract drafting, conflict resolution, and negotiations. In doing so, I can bring my own interest and my understanding of the creative process into my legal work to benefit you.

I can offer you individualized creative advice on your questions about copyright, media, press, and data protection law.

I begin where AI leaves off.

Qualifications, Admissions, Career

  • Certification as a data protection officer (TÜV Nord) (2025)
  • Certified mediator (§ 5 para. 2 Mediation Act, § 2 para. 6 ZMediatAusbV) (2019)
  • Doctorate (Dr. jur.) at the Freie Universität Berlin with a dissertation on artist management contracts in the music industry (2012)
  • Specialized lawyer (“Fachanwalt”) for copyright and media law (awarded in 2008)
  • Attorney-at-law in New York State, U.S. (admitted1998)
  • Attorney in Berlin, Germany (admitted 1996)
  • Master of Laws (LL.M.) from the St. Louis University School of Law with a focus on copyright law (graduated in 1996)
  • Law studies at the Universität Trier and the Freie Universität Berlin, legal internship at the court of appeal in Berlin (“Kammergericht”)

Lectureships, seminars, and lectures on copyright and media law (selection)

  • Law of Mediation / Law in Mediation (regular training module in two parts, Klären & Lösen, since 2025)
  • Management, Label, Booking Agency, and Publisher from a Single Source – Dos and Don’ts from a Legal Perspective (Lecture, IMUC e.V., 2023)
  • Introduction to Mediation for the Creative Industries (Workshop, Universität der Künste, 2022)
  • Contract Negotiation and Contract Drafting in the Media Industry (Seminar, Freie Universität Berlin, 2018 to 2023)
  • The Role of Mediation in Copyright and Media Law (Lecture, Medienkongress Berlin, 2021)
  • Law and Contract Practice in the Music Industry (Lecture, Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe, 2018)
  • Law and Practice in the Media Industry (Seminar, Freie Universität Berlin, 2017/2018)
  • Artists’ Contracts after the Copyright Reforms (Lecture, Medienkongress Berlin, 2016)
  • Introduction to Publishing and Copyright Law (Seminar, Freie Universität Berlin, 2003 to 2013)
  • The Artist Management Contract – Legal Dos and Don’ts (Workshop, Berlin Music Week, 2013)
  • The Adoption of Narrative Content from Novels and Television Series – On the Distinction between Adaptation and Free Use in Copyright Law (§§ 23, 24 UrhG) (Lecture, Freie Universität Berlin, 2012)
  • Introduction to Film and Film Music Law (Seminar, dffb Deutsche Film- und Fernsehakademie Berlin, 2009)
  • Introduction to Film Law (Lecture, Die Medienakademie, Hamburg, 2006)
  • Media Law, Specialist Areas of Music Law and Film Law (Seminar, mibeg Institut für berufliche Weiterbildung GmbH, 2002/2004)
  • Music Law Contracts from the Perspective of the Labels (Lecture, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster, 2001)
  • Copyright and Media Law (Seminar, Technische Akademie Wuppertal e.V., 1998)
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