Linda M. Burrow

Burrow’s practice as a Boies Schiller Flexner partner involves high-profile trial and appellate wins in cases including profit participation claims, copyright and trademark infringement cases, breach of contract matters, defamation and right of publicity suits.

In late March, a federal court in Virginia dismissed — without hearing oral argument — a plaintiff’s claims that the television series “Empire” infringed his copyright of his unpublished book “Unity Incorporated: The Mastermind.” “The plaintiff gave examples, but the court found the works were not substantially similar,” Burrow said. Levi v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., 3:16-cv-129 (E.D. Va., filed March 3, 2016).

“It was a good win, and of course I’m a fan of ‘Empire,’” Burrows said. “These copyright disputes with widely known targets are interesting. But a lot of times cases that don’t necessarily seem interesting on their face turn out to be fascinating also.” She had in mind a recent arbitration matter over Hollywood tourist bus tours and trademark infringement claims.

“It concerned the arcane matter of the law concerning confirmation of arbitration awards,” she said. “I found it super interesting on a legal nerd basis. Not interesting at a cocktail party, but intellectually stimulating.”

A state appellate panel held in a March 28 published opinion that Burrow’s client, EHM Productions Inc., fairly prevailed in a JAMS arbitration and that a Los Angeles trial court was correct to enter two consecutive judgments confirming the arbitration and a cost award. EHM Productions Inc. v. Starline Tours of Hollywood Inc., B281549 (Cal. App. 2nd Dist., filed March 20, 2017).

Burrow is also enthusiastic about a long-running pro bono case for which she won a 2017 First Amendment Award from the ACLU Foundation of Southern California. She obtained a permanent injunction from U.S. District Judge Christina A. Snyder preventing Los Angeles County supervisors from restoring a Latin cross to the official county seal. The move would violate the U.S. Constitution’s establishment clause and state law, Burrow contended on behalf of a group of Christian, Jewish and Muslim plaintiffs.

“That was the most fun I’ve had in a long time,” she said of the case. “The Christian plaintiffs didn’t want the seal to be exclusionary; the others didn’t want to be excluded. In part it was fascinating because there is in fact some subjectivity in the law in these matters. And the lawyer on the other side was so smart that we were constantly engaged in the very best kind of intellectual battle. Problem solving is fun.” Davies v. Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, 2:14-cv-00907 (C.D. Cal., filed Feb. 6, 2014).

— John Roemer