Charles H. Gardner

Charles H. Gardner

Charles H. Gardner
Special Counsel
Phone: 312.521.2762 vCard
Fax: 312.521.2862
cgardner@muchshelist.com

PRACTICE GROUP

AT WORK

Charles H. Gardner serves as Special Counsel in the Intellectual Property & Technology group and head of the firm's social media practice. With extensive experience as a media executive, in-house counsel and litigator, Charles represents a broad range of clients on technology, social media, business and intellectual property matters, with a particular eye toward navigating the legal challenges and opportunities arising from the intersection of new media technology with traditional business issues.

In today's new-media-driven environment, even the most traditional businesses are effectively creating "entertainment" content simply by virtue of having an Internet presence and providing written, audio and/or visual content—whether through user-generated website content, the use of Intranets and social media, or the creation of digital products and services. In addition to a focus on traditional business law and intellectual property protection, Charles works with clients to develop and document policies, create and implement procedures and programs, and conduct compliance audits related to the use of the Internet, new media and social media technologies and to stay on top of the ever-evolving regulations and best practices. He assists clients with intellectual property protection and claim management (including DMCA claims, copyright claims, trade secret protection, and protection of underlying source code and software integrity), as well as matters involving phishing, spamming, trolling, malware and spyware infections, hate speech, personal attacks and identity theft.

Charles has significant experience negotiating and drafting agreements that cover software licenses, Internet services, content sharing and advertising, as well as retail agreements involving e-commerce and brick-and-mortar stores. He advises clients on employment issues, including the development and implementation of legal and practical policies that minimize liability relating to a company's employment practices and the activities of its employees at and outside of work.

As an experienced trial and appellate attorney, Charles handles intellectual property and media-related disputes; tort and other types of claims (including defamation, invasion of privacy and misappropriation of names or likenesses claims); and FCC/FTC regulations and compliance. Drawing on his extensive network in the legal and entertainment industries, Charles offers clients an insider's perspective on the business, economic and regulatory issues they face every day.

IN THE PROFESSION

Charles has served as an executive, in-house counsel and outside counsel for a number of the country's top media companies, including Harpo Studios, Inc. (producer of The Oprah Winfrey Show) and Warner Bros./Telepictures. He is a member of the American Bar Association and the Chicago Bar Association.

Charles is a regular speaker at conferences and seminars on topics related to social media and entertainment law. Recent presentations include "From Nuisance to Necessity: Why and How to Embrace Social Media" and "Trademarks and Contests: What to Do with 140 Characters or Less" (which focused on the legal ins and outs of using platforms like Twitter to promote your business).

While in law school, Charles was a member of the Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review. He is a National Member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and the recipient of two Emmy Awards (1998 and 1999). Prior to entering law school, Charles garnered more than 50 national television production credits.

BACKGROUND

Loyola Law School Los Angeles
J.D., 2000

University of California, Berkeley
B.A., 1989 (Departmental Award for Technical Theatre)

Charles is admitted to practice in Illinois, California, New York and the District of Columbia (inactive), and before the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Seventh and Ninth Circuits.