MPAA hires Fabrizio as new general counsel

The Motion Picture Assn. of America has hired Washington attorney Steven Fabrizio as its senior executive vice president and global general counsel.

Fabrizio is considered one of the nation’s leading copyright and content protection lawyers and has long ties to the MPAA and its member companies, having served for many years as lead outside counsel.

He succeeds Henry Hoberman, who resigned in September, overseeing all legal, content protection and rights management programs within the MPAA. He begins his new job next month.

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“Steve has been one of the entertainment industry’s most effective advocates for years, and has the perfect blend of knowledge, skill, and experience to lead the MPAA’s already talented legal team,” MPAA Chairman and CEO Chris Dodd said in a statement. “As the MPAA’s new global general counsel, he will continue to protect the rights of our industry’s creators and makers so they can do what they do best: tell stories that entertain audiences across the globe.”

Fabrizio played a key role in the MPAA’s legal victory over cyberlocker site Hotfile.com and in negotiating the settlement that led to the closing of file-trading site Isohunt.com last month.

He joins the MPAA from the Washington, D.C., office of Jenner & Block, where he is a senior partner and co-chair of its content, media and entertainment practice.

He previously was the senior vice president of business and legal affairs for the Recording Industry Assn. of America (RIAA), where he was a principal architect of the industry’s litigation strategies to combat online music piracy.

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