Chris O'Brien is an active member of the firm's Corporate and Media and Entertainment Practices and Co-Chair of Venable's Blockchain and Digital Currency Group. He advises buyers, sellers, investors and joint venture partners in a range of corporate transactions and financings, and is frequently the outside general counsel for his clients. Across traditional and emerging media, his clients include content producers and distributors, talent agencies, investors, and financing sources. He was named to the list of "Most Influential Lawyers: Digital Media and e-Commerce Law" by the Los Angeles Business Journal.
Clients value Chris' insider's perspective as a senior executive who spent over a decade making critical legal decisions while in-house. He was a senior in-house attorney for Mattel, a Fortune 500 toy company, where among other matters he sold The Learning Company software division. He was also General Counsel to a mobile telecom startup privately valued at $1 billion, where he raised $120 million in equity financing, and General Counsel of a publicly traded $700 million revenue restaurant company.
Chris has experience with early stage companies across many industries, including blockchain, financial services, and healthcare.
Throughout his career, Chris has led matters with a significant international component. He began his legal practice at a prominent international law firm, spending time in its Prague and Helsinki offices, and over the course of 25+ years has handled critical legal matters in every major international market.Chris O'Brien is an active member of the firm's Corporate and Media and Entertainment Practices and Co-Chair of Venable's Blockchain and Digital Currency Group. He advises buyers, sellers, investors and joint venture partners in a range of corporate transactions and financings, and is frequently the outside general counsel for his clients. Across traditional and emerging media, his clients include content producers and distributors, talent agencies, investors, and financing sources. He was named to the list of "Most Influential Lawyers: Digital Media and e-Commerce Law" by the Los Angeles Business Journal.
Clients value Chris' insider's perspective as a senior executive who spent over a decade making critical legal decisions while in-house. He was a senior in-house attorney for Mattel, a Fortune 500 toy company, where among other matters he sold The Learning Company software division. He was also General Counsel to a mobile telecom startup privately valued at $1 billion, where he raised $120 million in equity financing, and General Counsel of a publicly traded $700 million revenue restaurant company.
Chris has experience with early stage companies across many industries, including blockchain, financial services, and healthcare.
Throughout his career, Chris has led matters with a significant international component. He began his legal practice at a prominent international law firm, spending time in its Prague and Helsinki offices, and over the course of 25+ years has handled critical legal matters in every major international market.