Scott R. Flick
Partner

Mr. Flick focuses on legal matters impacting mass media, programming, telecommunications, and technology companies, as well as non-communications companies faced with issues in the communications and entertainment fields. He represents broadcast stations, media companies, and networks before the federal government and assists them on transactional, regulatory, business, litigation, policy and technology matters. His practice addresses issues involving broadcast, cable and satellite television; radio; Internet; media technologies; advertising; program production and distribution; program rights; and related intellectual property issues. He litigates communications-related matters, and obtains changes in federal law and policy on behalf of clients. He has successfully litigated numerous precedent-setting cases, including matters related to cable program retransmission and the toll free number transfers. He has also worked with municipalities and public utilities seeking to build and operate broadband video and data distribution systems, structuring such ventures to operate in the current regulatory framework.

Mr. Flick is the co-creator and Chief Editor of CommLawCenter.com, Pillsbury's website for the communications industry. He is regularly quoted in industry trades, including Variety, AdWeek, Communications Daily, Inside Radio, RBR/TVBR, Politico, Entertainment Law Reporter, Politico Pro, TVNewsCheck, Public Broadcasting Report, TR Daily, CableFax, Tech Thursday, Current, TVTechnology, The Am Law Daily, and Business Insurance. His non-academic articles have been published in The National Law Journal, TVNewsDay, Multichannel News, and Broadcast Engineering. He is also frequently quoted by mainstream media, including USA Today, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Post, The Los Angeles Daily News, The Chicago Tribune, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Denver Post, The Houston Chronicle, The Boston Globe, The Miami Herald, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Sacramento Bee, The San Diego Union-Tribune, The San Jose Mercury News, The Seattle Times, The Oregonian, The Las Vegas Sun, U.S. News and World Report, ABC, CBS, National Public Radio, MSNBC, Bloomberg Businessweek, Salon, The Huffington Post, and Yahoo, as well as in over 150 other newspapers in the U.S. and around the world, including newspapers in Canada, Australia, and India.p>

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Flick was a partner at Fisher Wayland Cooper Leader & Zaragoza, a communications-oriented law firm that merged with Shaw Pittman (now Pillsbury) in April 2000.

• Long-term representation of national broadcast and cable networks on business and regulatory matters, including programming and intellectual property issues.
• Approximately $20 Billion of media sales and acquisitions, including structuring, negotiating and drafting transactional and litigation documents relating to those transactions.
• Drafting proposed legislation on media issues and securing its enactment, as well as coordinating opposition to pending or planned legislation on behalf of media entities.
• Negotiating and drafting of cable and satellite retransmission agreements, as well as handling of extensive carriage-related litigation.
• Litigating high-stakes matters for communications and non-communications companies involving media, telecommunications, and related laws.
• Negotiating and drafting of tower and studio leases for media companies, as well as network affiliation, programming, advertising, and services agreements.
• Structuring and negotiating programming production and distribution ventures.
• Negotiation and drafting of construction and usage agreements for communications-related infrastructure.

District of Columbia Bar, State of California Bar, Federal Communications Bar Association

U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia

"A Sense of Renewal: Navigating the FCC's Broadcast License Renewal Process," Webinar for the Indiana Broadcasters Association; October 11, 2011

"Staying Ahead of the Curve: A Tour of Washington's Monumental Communications Issues," Nebraska Broadcasters Association Annual Convention; August 17, 2011

“FCC Compliance Session,” Texas Association of Broadcasters/Society of Broadcast Engineers Annual Convention & Trade Show; August 10, 2011

“Broadcaster Regulatory and Legislative Roundtable,” Mid Atlantic States Broadcasters Conference; June 21, 2011

“FCC Restrictions on Underwriting Messages,” Executive Briefing Webinar for the Texas Association of Broadcasters; December 16, 2010

“Staying Ahead of the Curve: A Tour of Washington’s Monumental Communications Issues,” Indiana Broadcasters Association; October 13, 2010

“Making It Work: A Broadcaster’s Guide to the FCC’s EEO Rule,” Massachusetts Broadcasters Association; September 21, 2010

“Broadcast Spectrum in the Broadband Era” and “FCC Regulatory Update,” Texas Association of Broadcasters/Society of Broadcast Engineers Annual Convention & Trade Show; August 12, 2010

“Citizens United: New Opportunity for Broadcasters” and “Legislative Update,” Illinois Broadcasters Association Annual Conference; June 16, 2010

“Broadcaster Regulatory and Legislative Roundtable and FCC Summit,” Mid-Atlantic Broadcasters Conference; June 9, 2010

“Payola, Plugola & Rockola,” Texas Association of Broadcasters/Society of Broadcast Engineers Annual Convention & Trade Show; August 19, 2009

“Legislative Issues,” Illinois Broadcasters Association Annual Conference; June 17, 2009

“FCC Regulatory Update,” Texas Association of Broadcasters Annual Convention & Trade Show; August 7, 2008.

“Five Steps for Effective Retransmission Negotiations,” Pillsbury Webinar; December 5, 2007

External Publications
What to Watch for at Carriage Election Time, Multichannel News, September 26, 2011

Managing Debt Covenants in Hard Times, TVNewsDay, Co-Authored with Miles S. Mason, March 4, 2009

Digital Delay, Indiana Broadcasters Association Newsletter, January 2009

Federal Legislative News, Massachusetts Broadcasters Association Legislative E-Newsletter, June 2008

Main Studio Mayhem, Indiana Broadcasters Association Newsletter, June/July 2008

Stations Face Regs for Kids’ Programming, The National Law Journal, Co-Authored by Laurie Lynch-Flick, January 20, 1997

Review of the 1989 Trademark Decisions of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, Co-Authored by Ann K. Ford, 39 Am. U.L. Rev. 1233, 1990

The Life, Death and Rebirth of Section 319(a): The Prohibition on Premature Construction of Communications Facilities, 40 Fed. Comm. L.J. 235, 1988