Alan S. Clarke

Alan S. Clarke is an attorney in the Litigation, Intellectual Property and Entertainment & Sports practice groups at Greenspoon Marder LLP. With over 30 years of experience, Mr. Clarke concentrates his practice on entertainment industry matters, including contract drafting and negotiations, trademark and copyright sales and acquisitions and corporate law, as well as infringement and breach of contract issues. He regularly represents and counsels entertainment companies, athletes, actors, performers, producers, writers, publishers, and artists.

As a seasoned practitioner, Mr. Clarke has extensive knowledge of the television, film and music industries, including the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights. He also has substantial experience in setting up, maintaining, transferring and terminating entertainment entities and their assets. Additionally, he handles a wide array of commercial litigation and transactional disputes, including but not limited to infringements, actions to enforce or terminate contractual agreements and issues related to rights of privacy, publicity and defamation.

Before joining Greenspoon Marder, Mr. Clarke chaired the Entertainment, Sports and Media group of one of the ten largest law firms in Atlanta. Also, for more than 20 years, he founded and led his own firm, concentrating on intellectual property, general commercial litigation, and entertainment matters. Furthermore, Mr. Clarke served as a former Assistant District Attorney for Rockdale County District Attorney’s Office.

Mr. Clarke is a member of The Recording Academy (the Grammy organization) and NATAS (the Television Academy). He has served in various leadership positions as Chair of the Entertainment and Sports Law Section of the State Bar of Georgia and Chair of the North American Entertainment Sports & IP Law Summit. Mr. Clarke also was the Chair of the Entertainment Law Institute. Furthermore, he is a Fellow of the Lawyers Foundation of Georgia, an organization of attorneys selected from three percent of the Georgia State Bar membership “whose public and private careers demonstrate outstanding legal abilities and a devotion to their communities.”

As a recognized entertainment lawyer, Mr. Clarke received the Georgia Lawyers for the Arts (GLA) Ben White Distinguished Service Award in 2018 for his “outstanding commitment and dedication to the arts community in Georgia.” He was also recognized as Attorney of the Year in 2014 by Georgia Lawyers for the Arts for providing the most pro bono hours to artists and arts organizations through GLA. In addition, Mr. Clarke is listed as “Top Rated” by Georgia Super Lawyers and Georgia Legal Elite for Entertainment & Sports.

What’s more, Mr. Clarke has lectured on entertainment law and intellectual property issues before groups such as Emory University School of Law, the Florida Bar Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Section, Mercer University School of Law, the Levin College of Law at the University of Florida, Georgia State University College of Law, the Dramatists Guild of America, the Gospel Music Association, and NALS – the Association for Legal Professionals. Additionally, he has spoken to attorney groups, with Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Carol Hunstein, on legal professionalism and ethics.

Education

• J.D, Emory University, School of Law, 1989
• B.A., English, History, Duke University, cum laude, 1985

Bar Admissions

• Georgia

Court Admissions

• U.S. Court Of Appeals, D.C. Circuit
• U.S. Court Of Appeals, Federal Circuit