Richard Samson

Richard Samson was formerly a Vice President and Assistant General Counsel to The New York Times Company and its various media and internet properties. In this role, he assumed chief responsibility for the Company's intellectual property issues, and provided strategic support to the news, video and podcast teams. Before his tenure at The New York Times, he served as business affairs and intellectual property counsel to A&E Television Networks. He began his legal career practicing entertainment and intellectual property law at Proskauer, where he served as assistant general counsel to the Estate of Leonard Bernstein and represented various entertainment industry clients, including many Broadway productions. He also served as legal counsel to The Broadway League and to the Tony® Awards. Other representative clients have included Radio City Music Hall, The Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization, Madison Square Garden, Lincoln Center, New York City Opera, The Estate of Keith Haring and the NBA. When not practicing law, Richard has been involved in many creative endeavors, including as a screenwriter. He co-produced the Cole Porter musical "High Society" on Broadway at the St. James Theatre (for which he received a Drama Desk nomination for Best Musical). Richard was an adjunct professor at Rutgers Law School and has been a frequent speaker on the subject of media law.