Of Counsel
Chaz advises clients in the film and television industry on matters related to: copyright, defamation, fair use, licensing and acquisition of literary rights, motion picture finance and development, foreign and domestic distribution, new media technologies, film and tv production, rights of publicity, trade secrets, trademarks, unfair competition and other transactional issues. An internationally recognized attorney, Chaz is licensed in the practice of law in California, Nevada, New York, Texas and the District of Columbia.
Mr. Rainey earned his undergraduate degree in English from the University of California, Berkeley, where he graduated with highest honors, earned his juris doctorate cum laude from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and earned his Master of Laws (LL.M.) with Merit from the London School of Economics.
In addition to his extensive transactional experience, Chaz is an accomplished litigator and negotiator, having served as lead counsel on over 200 cases in both state and federal court, with an emphasis on complex commercial disputes, often involving allegations of fraud, cross-border disputes and choice of law. He has first-chaired more than a dozen jury and bench trials, argued before federal and state appellate courts (including the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals), argued before arbitrators, and even negotiated the settlement of investment disputes with sovereign governments.
He began his legal career as the in-house legal counsel to what is now William Hill North America — the largest consolidated race and sports book operator in the United States. However, when Chaz first started with the company, it was a small startup without a single location. Chaz helped take the company from a simple idea into a fully-financed, multi-million-dollar operation, with roughly twenty locations spread across Nevada, Delaware and St. Kitts.
While in law school, Chaz served as a legal extern in the Washington, D.C. office of then Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. He also served as a summer associate for the internationally renowned law firm of Greenberg Traurig, LLP.
In addition to his work in private practice, Chaz serves as a board member of the Bill Nye Science Foundation, and previously served as a board member for the international think tank, the State Concepts Foundation.
Before entering the practice of law, Chaz worked in the film and television industry as a grip, electrician and general studio mechanic. As a union member of IATSE, he worked on several features and television projects (mostly filmed in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States). At that time, he also produced and directed short-form media content, such as commercials and music videos.
Super Lawyers rates Mr. Rainey as a top attorney in the practice of Entertainment and Sports. Chaz is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.