Daniel Jason Ain is Counsel at the firm, practicing in the fields of entertainment, media and literary, intellectual property and employment law.  He has counseled on a broad range of television, film and new media projects, with direct experience serving as production counsel and in representing talent.  Mr. Ain is well-versed in the full range of entertainment and literary matters, negotiating transactions for clients in areas including theatre, podcasts, live music, book publishing, sports, licensing and endorsements.

Prior to joining RPJ, Mr. Ain was a Senior Associate with the Peikoff Mahan Law Office, where he directly represented actors, directors and writers.  He was previously an Associate with Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, representing corporate clients in finance transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and executive compensation matters, as well as advising high net worth individuals in estate planning.  Mr. Ain also has extensive experience in Sports Law, working with Major League Baseball and serving as the Executive Editor of the Harvard Journal of Sports & Entertainment Law during law school.  Mr. Ain additionally has a business background in human resource and corporate employment matters, having started his career at Google in People Operations prior to becoming an attorney.

Mr. Ain is admitted to practice in the State of New York and the District of Columbia.

Mr. Ain received his undergraduate degree in Economics and Psychology from Brown University (B.A., magna cum laude, 2009) and his law degree from Harvard Law School (J.D., cum laude, 2015).

Services

• Member of MLRC Media Deals Committee
• Judge of the 2023 Cardoza Invitational Negotiation on Entertainment, Media and Art (CINEMA) Competition

Honors

• Selected for the Realscreen Factual Under 40 List for 2024 (recognizing top talent in the unscripted and nonfiction media industry at or under the age of forty)

Noted Speaking Engagements

• “Essentials of Legal Research and Writing” Guest Speaker, Yale Law School – February 12, 2025
• “Ask Us Anything” Panelist with RPJ Partner, Nicole Page, DOC NYC PRO: Producing and Directing Day – November 21, 2024
• “RPJ Counsel Daniel Ain Invited to Speak to PGA Create Fellows” RPJ – December 15, 2023
• “Documentary Ethics and the Law” Panelist with RPJ Partner, Nicole Page, DOC NYC PRO: Producing and Directing Day- November 10, 2023
• “Dialogue: RealScreen” Workshop Panelist with RPJ Partner, Nicole Page – September 13, 2023
• “New York Times Vs. Sullivan: Defamation and the Future of Documentary Filmmaking,” Panelist with RPJ Partner, Nicole Page, DOC NYC PRO: Producing Day – November 11, 2022

Selected Articles & Publications

• “Nico and Madden Iamaleava transfers raise issue of whether NIL collectives will recoup payments” by Eric Olson, featuring Daniel Ain, Associated Press – April 24, 2025
• “Expert Highlights Top NIL Considerations in College Football Transfer Portal Frenzy” by Mady Hudak, featuring Daniel Ain, Sports Illustrated – April 17, 2025
• “Duke’s ‘White Lotus’ Cameo Not Likely An IP Problem For HBO” by Theresa Schliep, featuring Daniel Ain, Law360 – March 28, 2025
• “Jury Finds in Favor of Apple Inc. in Copyright Battle Over ‘Servant'” RPJ – January 28, 2025
• “Leaked MrBeast docs reveal ‘Beast Games’ contestant terms — including a $500K penalty for divulging info” Business Insider, by Amanda Perelli, featuring Daniel Ain – December 19, 2024
• “Netflix’s ‘Our Father’: A Fertile Ground for Lawsuits and Legal Drama” RPJ – December 12, 2024
• “A Win for Visual Artists in the Copyright Battle Against AI Art Generators” RPJ – August 20, 2024
• “A Major Challenge to the NCAA’s NIL Restrictions” RPJ – February 15, 2024
• “A Sign of the Times: Copyright Lawsuit Filed Against Microsoft and Open AI by The New York Times” RPJ – January 4, 2024
• “Back at the Table: SAG-AFTRA Negotiations Resume” RPJ – October 26, 2023
• “The NCAA’s Summer of Legal Battles” RPJ – September 14, 2023
• “No Laughing Matter: Sarah Silverman’s Copyright Suit Against Meta” RPJ- July 28, 2023
• “Viewpoint: Andy Warhol, Prince and fair use — what doc-makers need to know” Realscreen – June 19, 2023
• “A Closer Look at the DGA’s Tentative Agreement” RPJ – June 13, 2023
• “The Copyright Battle Between Trump and Woodward: Who Owns the Interviews?” RPJ – April 27, 2023
• “Gonzalez v. Google: Supreme Court Case Puts Section 230 Immunity on the Line”  RPJ – February 28, 2023
• “The FTX Film Rights Bidding War: Considerations for Sellers and Buyers” RPJ – December 13, 2022