Michael Sofia

About Michael Sofia

I am a senior corporate lawyer with +15 years of experience providing strategic, operational, and legal advice and support to the world’s leading media and entertainment companies, including NBCUniversal and Time Warner Inc.(now Warner Bros. Discovery). An experienced trial lawyer and former federal prosecutor, I have tried over 20 cases to verdict and was one of three in-house lawyers on the trial team representing Time Warner at its successful six-week trial against the DOJ in an antitrust lawsuit seeking to block Time Warner’s $109B acquisition by AT & T, the government\'s first challenge to a vertical merger in decades. As a litigator for NBCUniversal, and previously as Chief Litigation Counsel and Global Chief Compliance Officer for Time Warner/WarnerMedia, I specialize in mitigating criminal, regulatory, operational, financial, and reputational risk across all lines of business, including theatrical and television production, distribution, acquisition, licensing, newsgathering, marketing, direct-to-consumer, games, consumer products, and all corporate functions. A highly organized and trusted business partner, I am respected by clients and colleagues for providing practical advice to complex legal and business issues, including litigation, internal and government investigations (DOJ, SEC), regulatory matters, M&A and other strategic transactions, employment disputes, antitrust, anti-corruption (FCPA, UK Bribery Act), sanctions (OFAC), information security, data privacy, and intellectual property. I also offer expertise in change management having led through two mega mergers – AT & T’s acquisition of Time Warner and Discovery’s acquisition of WarnerMedia just four years later. I am admitted to the State Bars of New York and New Jersey and U.S. District Courts, S.D.N.Y, E.D.N.Y, S.D.Fl.Outside the office, I am an avid baseball fan, youth sports volunteer, self-proclaimed true crime aficionado, and lover of all things New Jersey (think Springsteen, Bon Jovi, the Shore, Taylor Ham) even though I now live in New York. Proud dad to two energetic boys and lucky husband to a wonderful wife.

Experience

1. Senior Vice President, Litigation

   NBCUniversal

   Mar 2023 — Present · NY, US

   Represent and advise the company on pre-litigation and litigation matters relating to NBCU’s television, film, and digital properties. Representative matters include complex consumer class actions, government investigations, intellectual property, defamation, and employment disputes.

Education

• Loyola University Maryland

  Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

• Brooklyn Law School

  Doctor of Law (J.D.)

• Columbia University - Columbia Business School

  Executive Education

Skills

• Corporate Compliance
• Fcpa
• Ofac
• Hearings
• Privacy Law
• Trial Practice
• Appeals
• White Collar Criminal Defense
• Civil Litigation
• Legal Writing
• Litigation
• Trials
• Criminal Law
• Fraud
• Corporate Governance
• Criminal Prosecution
• Legal Research
• Internal Investigations
• Courts
• Data Privacy