LOS ANGELES / NEW YORK/WASHINGTON— Variety has named Alex Berengaut, Hardy Ehlers, Mike Hill, Phyllis Jones, Derek Ludwin, Adrian Perry, Robyn Polashuk, Neema Sahni, Paul Schmidt, and Jonathan Sperling to its 2026 Legal Impact Report, which profiles “Hollywood’s top entertainment attorneys.” Covington is one of only four firms with ten or more honorees on this year’s list.
A litigator in Covington’s Washington office, Alex serves as co-chair of the firm’s Government Litigation practice. He has served as lead counsel in a range of commercial disputes and government enforcement proceedings, and represents leading technology companies in litigation and compliance matters relating to data privacy, platform liability, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity.
Hardy is a litigator in Covington’s Los Angeles office and handles complex legal disputes with particular expertise in intellectual property and contract cases in the entertainment industry. He has comprehensive trial, arbitration, and appellate experience, encompassing representations in the entertainment, technology, private equity, and life sciences industries.
A corporate lawyer in Covington’s New York office, Mike advises sports leagues, conferences, and teams, as well as media and technology companies, in connection with a broad array of commercial and corporate transactions. He has extensive experience with complex television and video licensing and distribution agreements across broadcast, cable and streaming, with a particular focus on sports media rights agreements.
Phyllis is a litigator in Covington’s Washington office and serves co-chair of the firm’s Product Liability practice. She is lead counsel in high-profile complex mass torts involving thousands of claims, often with significant liability risks. She represents clients in both state and federal courts, as well as before arbitral panels and regulatory bodies.
An antitrust lawyer in Covington’s Washington and New York offices, Derek serves as co-chair of the firm’s Sports and Antitrust Litigation practices. He advises clients around the world on high-stakes transactions and disputes, with a focus on entertainment, sports, and technology matters, and extensive experience with licensing and distribution arrangements.
Adrian is an entertainment and tech transactions lawyer in Covington’s New York office and serves as co-chair of the firm’s Entertainment and Media Industry and Music Industry practice groups. He is helping to shape the future of how content is created and consumed, and is an authority on the intersection of AI and entertainment, digital content distribution, rights acquisitions, and data commercialization.
Based in Covington’s Los Angeles office, Robyn serves as co-chair of the firm's Entertainment and Media Industry Group. Her practice focuses on the evolution of video consumption and the distribution of programming across traditional and digital platforms. She provides strategic and transactional counsel to leading studios, television networks, and media technology companies around the world.
Neema is a commercial litigator in Covington’s Los Angeles office and serves as co-chair of the firm's Entertainment and Media, Commercial Litigation, and Music Industry groups. Drawing upon her experience at the firm and her prior experience in-house, Neema specializes in handling complex commercial disputes and providing practical solutions that help clients understand and mitigate their legal risks and advance their business objectives.
A litigator in Covington’s New York and Washington offices, Paul is a nationally recognized trial lawyer and litigation strategist with decades of experience defending clients in the most complex and high-stakes lawsuits. His work spans mass tort litigation, ranging from life sciences clients to social media companies, and complex commercial litigation, class actions, and media cases. He serves as co-chair of the firm’s Product Liability and Mass Torts practice.
Jonathan is a trial lawyer in Covington’s New York office with over thirty years’ experience litigating complex commercial disputes. He chairs the firm’s Music Industry practice and has represented record companies, publishers, and streaming platforms in some of their most significant matters.
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