Beverly Hills Attorney Trades On Expert Skills

Marc Toberoff is an attorney who’s made a reputation suing big studios on behalf of TV-show creators claiming they’re owed money for movie rights. (The Writers Guild contract stipulates that the creator of a TV show retains the show’s movie rights.)

Toberoff’s latest contingency-fee payment revolves around an agreement to exchange his expertise for a “piece of the action,” when he successfully represents the creator of a TV show.

His most recent success regards the new movie The Dukes of Hazzard, which opens August 5. The film is based on the popular 1970’s TV comedy about two Southern buddies who drive around getting into trouble and outwitting some local buffoons.

Warner Bros., the studio making the film, settled out of court and paid the writers of the TV series $17.5 million for the movie rights. It’s believed to be the largest sum ever to arise out of a case involving movie rights for a TV show.

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