Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP
6 lawyers · City of Toronto
One of 2,345 law firms listed in Toronto, and one of 764 handling Business & Corporate Law.
About Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP
Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP is a small Toronto law firm focused on media, entertainment, telecommunications, and technology law, with an office on Queen Street East in the city's Riverside neighbourhood. Mark Lewis, Eric Birnberg, and Richard Hanet founded the firm in January 2006, after each had spent years working inside the industries the firm now advises. Lewis had served as legal counsel to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and coordinated the national media, entertainment, and telecommunications law practice at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. Birnberg spent eight years at Alliance Atlantis, rising to General Counsel for the whole organization after earlier working as legal counsel at The Movie Network. Hanet had led business and legal affairs for Alliance Atlantis's factual and documentary production group.
The firm advises producers, distributors, broadcasters, and talent on production financing, distribution agreements, chain of title, incorporations, and CRTC broadcast licence applications and renewals, combining regulatory and transactional work under one roof. Karla Bobadilla later joined as a partner, and by 2024 the firm was appearing in CRTC filings as Lewis Birnberg Hanet Bobadilla LLP. Of Counsel Greg Stephens adds a music law focus to the firm's entertainment practice. It's a firm made up of lawyers who worked inside the industries they now represent.
Practice areas
Milestones & recognition
- Mark Lewis, Eric Birnberg, and Richard Hanet founded the firm in January 2006.
- Before co-founding the firm, Mark Lewis was national coordinator of the media, entertainment, and telecommunications law practice at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP and had served as legal counsel to the CRTC. In 2005, Lewis co-founded Direct Response Television Collective Inc., a collective society that administers rights for multiple copyright owners.
- Eric Birnberg spent eight years at Alliance Atlantis, holding senior roles including Senior Vice President, Business and Legal Affairs for the Television Group, before becoming General Counsel to the entire organization.
- Richard Hanet was the lead instructor of Law 326 (Entertainment Law) at Queen's University's Faculty of Law in 2004, two years before co-founding the firm.
- By 2024, the firm was appearing before the CRTC as Lewis Birnberg Hanet Bobadilla LLP, reflecting Karla Bobadilla's role as a partner.
In the community
- Karla Bobadilla is a former Chair of the Board of the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival and a former board member of Cultural Careers Council Ontario (WorkInCulture), which supports Ontario's arts and cultural workforce.
- Eric Birnberg sits on the Canadian Media Producers Association's International Business and Production Financing Committee and its Copyright Committee, and represents the CMPA as Vice Chair of the Canadian Retransmission Collective and Chair of the Producers Audio-Visual Collective of Canada.
- Of Counsel Greg Stephens is a member of the International Association of Entertainment Lawyers and the American Bar Association.
Good to know
Wheelchair accessible
By appointmentLawyers 6
This firm’s lawyers at a glance
- Called to the bar
- 1978–1998 · median 33 years in practice 5 of 6 lawyers
- Law schools
- University of Western Ontario (2), Queen's University, University of Toronto, University of Windsor 5 of 6 lawyers
Who handles what
The neighbourhood
The firm's office sits on Queen Street East in Riverside, the stretch of Queen East between the Don River and Leslieville that's been a business improvement area since 1980 (it started as the Queen-Broadview Village BIA and was renamed the Riverside BIA in 2004). It's a fitting address for a media and entertainment practice: the strip is built around independent shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues rather than office towers, including the restored Broadview Hotel and the Opera House concert venue, with more than 100 shops, eateries, and attractions along the way.
Frequently asked questions
- What areas of law does Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP handle?
- The firm focuses on media, entertainment, telecommunications, and technology law: production financing, distribution and co-production agreements, chain of title, incorporations, and CRTC broadcast licensing and regulatory work, for producers, distributors, broadcasters, and talent.
- Does the firm handle CRTC broadcast licence applications and renewals?
- Yes. Its regulatory work includes broadcast licence applications and renewals and change of control applications for radio and television, building on Mark Lewis's earlier work as legal counsel to the CRTC. The firm appeared before the CRTC as recently as 2024, representing a Calgary ethnic broadcaster in a licensing proceeding.
- Can Lewis Birnberg Hanet help set up a production company or structure a co-production deal?
- The firm handles incorporations, shareholder agreements, and domestic and international co-production and co-venture agreements for producers and production companies.
- Does the firm work with music industry clients?
- Of Counsel Greg Stephens focuses on music law within the firm's entertainment practice, drawing on membership in the International Association of Entertainment Lawyers and the American Bar Association.
- Where is Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP located?
- The firm's office is at 693 Queen Street East in Toronto's Riverside neighbourhood, between the Don River and Leslieville.
- How long has the firm been practising media law in Toronto?
- Mark Lewis, Eric Birnberg, and Richard Hanet founded the firm in January 2006, and Karla Bobadilla later joined as a partner.
Where to find them
693 Queen Street East, Toronto, Ontario M4M 1G6 · 416-865-9444
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