CaliforniaLaw Business Supplementlo the Los AngelesDaily Journal and the San FranciscoDaily Journal Monday,March 21,'1994

Reprinledby permissionfrom The Daily Journal ColP. ENTERTAINiIENTLAW BEST IN THE WEST JohnBranca is gladMichael Jackson is againhis client, but even without him the attorneyhad his three most productive years.

By ICHAEL D. HARRIS

n the srnalt,elite circle of high'pol. away from Mr. lietds and back into his own ered enlertainment la$yers, it was d^zzling stable of clients,a virtual Wio's the client coup of 1993.John who ofrock'n' roll andpop music. Branca, indispulably the top music Nothins could be turther trom the truth, lawyer on the West Coast and per- Mr. Branca says.In fact, he maintains, those haps in tle country - his friend, years were the most producdve of his career New York's Allen Grubrnan, being by Iar. "Of course I wanted Michael back,' his only tsue competitor for the latter tide - says the soft-spokenattorney who rarely reunited with superstar entertainer Michael grants intewiews. "But I never mounted a Jackson, who was about to become deeply c"mpaisn to set him back. I was not sittins irnrnersed in battlins child nolestation there Iyins in wait. Tbat is simply not the alegations. case.Michael makes his ortl decisions.' 'The Back in 1979,Mr. Branca was a youns tax fact that Michael Jacksoncame back partner with the now-defunctHardee, to me was a nice vindication in a s€nse,"h€ Barovick, Konecky & Braun, when he ]vas says, "but it wasn't something I was basing assiSnedto work on Mr. Jackson'saccourL my care€r on. The past three years have W}len Mr. Jackson'scareer skyrocketed been the most productive of my caree/ in with the 1982release of the mega-platjnum which he negotiated a majority of the mega- '"Ihriller" albun - the bissest-sel:ins afiist deals in the record business. album of all time - Mr. Branca took otr Those deals inctud€d representins with him, negotiatingdcals for the enter- A€rosmith in a four-album. S30 million tainer and helpilg to managehim. In the recordins contract ltith Music, the process,Mr. Brdnca mad€ his repu[adoo as Rotlinc Stones in a threealbum, $40 milion well as millions ofdollars. recording agreernentwith Wgin Records- But in 1990, that muhally lucratjve rela- the largest in history for a rccording gmup tionship ground to a halt R€portedly at the - and in a S39 million music urgiry of entertainment czar David Gefien, publishing deal with Warner/Chappel \,vhofelt Mr. Branca ]vas wielding too much Other deals included representing ZZTop influencewith the superstar,Mr. Jackson in a fivealburn, $30 nilion recording asree teartully ircd the attomey and jumped ship ment with BMG Recordsand negotiating, to Bert Fields, primarily kno\rn as a heavy- along with fello]v ZiI&en Brittenham partner w€ight entertainmentlitjSator. Gary Stiffelman, the Prince/Warner Bros. lrte last year, however, Mr. Fields - a deal worth a reported 5100 million. (Before Time/wamer and Delicious Vinyl in the already formidable roster of clients that establishmentof a joint venture with includes such personal favorites as the name partner with Century City's switching to Zif&en Brittenham, Prince used 'Iime/Warner, Greenberg, GlLrsker,Fields, Claman & to be representedby prorninent music attor- and helped establish a joint Beach Boys and . (BeIore settins Machtinger - resigned for undisclosedr€a ney lee Phillips, a name partner with west venture between Sony Music and Dick his law degree from UCLA in 1975,Mr. sons as Mr. Jackson'sattorn€y a month ' Manatt, Phelps & Phillips. Clark Productions for the creation of new Branca played keyboards in a band that before the ent€rtain€r reportedly paid mi! Prince filed suit against Manatt Phelps and recordings and the telemarketing of openedfor Jim Morrison and companyat lions of dollars to settle a career-threatening his former accountantsfor breach of fiducia records. the \4liskey). molestation lawsuit filed agarnst bim by a ry duty and conspiracy to deiaud, but the H€ also began representing the estate of Mr. Branca was obviously a very busy l4yearcld boy. action w?s later settled.) Elvis Presley and picked up as clients a host man during his years away from Mr. And Mr, Branca,a name partner at But thafs not all. During that period, Mr. of alternative and rap artists such as Jackson- so busy, he says, that he wasn't Ziffren, Brittenhan & Branca, the premier Branca also repr€sentedJVC in negotiations Niwana, Rage Against the Machine, Tool, left with a lot of time to worry about how to Century City ertertrinment boutique, once with MCA to €stablish a Japanesejoint ven- Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogsy Dog, Sir Mix-a-l,ot, get the superstar back with Ziffren again found himselJ handling the sef-styled ture record companlt DefAmerican Records Megadeth and Toad the Wet Sprockel Brittenharn. "King of Pop's"substartial body of music and its founder, , in establishinga Durig that period, he also started doing He says his reunion with Mr. Jackson joint venture with iryamer Bros. Records; music work for such esiablished recording sternned fom a lunch he had last summer For that he will be forever glateful. But and Interscope Communications in es. artists as , Duran Duran, with fte entertaine/s manager, &ndy Gal- Mr. Branca,43, feels the media has perpetu- tablishing a joint venture rvith Atlantic Traveling Wilburys, Kiss, Dwight Yoakan, lin, with whom he had represented the ult! ated a misconception about the three or so Recordsand the formation of Interscope Meatloaf, Tony Toni Tone, Chris Isaak, mately disgmced Mi i Vanilli. Mr. B.anca years he was in exile from the Jackson Records. George Winston al|d former Motley Crue says he and Mr. Gallin practically went camp: Namely, that he did lihle more than In addition, he represented Rhino lead singervince Neil. through the en6,"elunch without discr.rssing sit around plotting how to get the superstar Records in establishiry joint ventures with The new clientsexpanded Mr. Branca's the supeFtar, but 6naly did after Mr. Galin

/ Monday,March 21, 1994 CALIFORNIAI DAZZLINGCLIENT LIST_ "l was forlunalein that a numberol very imporlant clientsshowed conlldence in me by retainingme," says atlorneyJohn Branca,who B{B represenlsrnusrc neavy- weighls (lrom lett) Don Henley;, lor whom he negotlaleda $30 million recorddea; [,lichael Jackson,who returnedlo lhe fold in lhe clientcoup of i993i andPrince, ior whom he and parlnerGary Sllflelmanhandled a deal wilh Warner Bros.repo edly worth$100 million. brought lus name up. lultures start circling," he says."And people independent,and who will stand up and Afterwards, Mr. Branca says, Mr. Gallin were waiting to see if that was it, hoping ihat representa client ag$€ssively." telephonedMr. who in tum tele I would ride into the suns€L" The past few years have seen Ziffren Jackson, 'So phonedMr. Brancaseveral days later and yeah, there \rere some nervous Bdttenham hit with several conllict{iinter- 'But asked him to once againjoin the team. times,'he alows. I nust say that I was est suits.One was dismissedon summary Mr. Jackson quicldy reap€d the benefits fortunate in that a number of very important judsmenq one was setded and two are p€nd- of his rcnewed association\,\,ith Mr Branca- clients - both corporate and artists - mg. The attomey brokered for him the larsest showed confdence in me by retaining me. Mr. Brdnca sals they're all '"!Vhat's Stoundless.'is music publishinsdeal in history.worlh an And in retrospecL the pmctice continued to really happening,"he says, estimatedS100 rniltion- Under ir. Mr. grow without missing a beaL" that when you're successful,people come Jackson's\€st publishing holdings - which Mr, Branca denies reports that ever since out of the woodwork looking to t le a shot, include mosi of the bnnon/Mccartney being 6red by Mr. Jackson, he's been was' to see if they can get a settlemenl" catalog as well as soDgsby Mr, Presley, ing a war of revengeagainst Mr. Geffen. "Conlticts are absolutely ineviiable in any 'As Uttle Richard and many others - will be fir as I'm concemed, there is no dis businessas small as the music business,"he administeredby EMI Music. pute .,vithDavid Gefren,' he says. goes on. "It may be a big dollar business, Mr, Bmnca, who has been a name parher But industry observers note Mr. Branca but there ar€ only six major distnbutors in at Zitren Brittenhan since 1984,lets on that took Aerosmith from Geffen Recordsto North Arnerica and five international disfib- being 6red by Mr Jackson left him shalen Sony and started representing ex-Eagle utors. And without being arrogant, I would for a brief period of time. Henley, who is suins to leave Gefien. say the number of top law firms that are 'In this business, if you re viewed as lut To that, Mr. Branca says, "I'm a person handling most of the tr-ansactionsare maybe nerable, or you've lost your power base, the who peopleidentify as somebody$,ho is four or 6ve."

AW BUSINESS Monday,March 21, I994/