Frank Rothman

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Frank Rothman

Frank Rothman (1927-April 25, 2000) was one of the nation's most respected sports and entertainment lawyers. He represented companies such as the National Football League (N.F.L.), the Professional Golfers Association, Warner Brothers, Walt Disney Co., Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox. During 1982-1986, he served as the chairman and CEO of MGM/UA studios. Later in life, Rothman was a partner in the Los Angeles office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, the New York law firm, specializing in antitrust law and working for big clients in sports and entertainment. During his 48 year career, Rothman has represented every major athletic league in the country from baseball and hockey to indoor football. However, he is well versed in the legal field, in 1999 he challenged the constitutionality of the November ballot proposition that legalized Indian gaming in California.

The National Law Journal called him a "legendary litigator," and he was included several times on its list of the 100 most influential lawyers in the nation. California Law Business named Rothman one of two contenders for "the title of most coveted litigator in California." In 1983, Rothman was named entertainment executive of the year. In 1994, the California State Bar named Rothman antitrust lawyer of the year.

During the 1990's, Rothman litigated a number of entertainment cases. He helped settle the battle for the videocassette distribution rights to the movies "Platoon" and "Hoosiers." He negotiated an option agreement for the rights to Muhammad Ali's life store and represented Home Box Office in an antitrust lawsuit brought by a Los Angeles pay-television channel.

Rothman grew up in Los Angeles, he graduated from Fairfax Highschool and received his undergraduate degree from the University of California at Los Angeles (1949) and his law degree from the University of Southern California (1951). In the early 1950's he worked in the Los Angeles city attorney's office then joined a small, local firm that became Wyman, Bautzer, Rothman & Kuchel & Silbert. This firm had grown to have 40 partners and 100 associates with offices in Century City, Orange County, California, and the District of Columbia. Rothman eventually left this firm to join MGM and then was recruited by Skadden Arps.

N.F.L.

Frank Rothman was the N.F.L's lead attorney for more than a decade and represented the N.F.L.in many of its most important cases. One of those, Rothman's biggest victory was defending the N.F.L.in a 1986 antitrust case filed by the fledgling United States Football League (U.S.F.L.). The verdict of this case was ruled by a jury and stated that the N.F.L.did violate antitrust law, stating that it was a monopoly. However, the league did not prevent the USFL from obtaining a network television contract. The jury awarded the U.S.F.L $1 in damages, when they had sought $1 billion. The commissioner of the National Football League, Paul Tagliabue, stated that "Frank was a combination of Shula, Landry and Roll in the courtroom." This is referencing three legendary football coaches: Tom Landry, Don Shula and Chuck Noll.

Judge Stephan Reinhardt, of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stated that Rothman "was one of the top lawyers in the area, and one of the ablest and most respected." He continued to say that "for many years, (Rothman) was the NFL's chief anti-trust attorney.

MGM/UA

In 1982, Rothman, with little to no experience in studio operation, was named chairman and chief executive of MGM/UA Entertainment Company. Rothman assisted in reducing the studio's debts. Rothman represented Kirk Kerkorian as well, the owner of MGM movie studios. When Kerkorian sold the studio in 1986, Rothman returned to law. He joined Skadden, Arps, Slate Meagher & Flom as a senior partner.

Ronald L. Olson, a trial attorney in Los Angeles stated that Frank's "heart was always in the law and that was why he was able to make the transition back to becoming a practicing lawyer." Rothman himself even stated that as a lawyer you are responsible for the outcome of your case, while a studio chief is always blamed for the failure of movies he neither writes, directs or acts in.

National Basketball Association

Rothman handled a case involving Spencer Haywood that invalidated the National Basketball Association's rule preventing players from entering the league before their college class graduated. This was named the "hardship rule," this allows undergraduates to leave college before four years to play in the National Basketball Association.

Rothman also represented teams such as the Boston Celtics, the Seattle SuperSonic, the Portland Trail Blazers and the Lose Angeles Rams.

Rothman Scholarship

Each year, USC Gould awards the Frank Rothman Scholarship to an outstanding incoming student. The scholarship provides: full-tuition guaranteed for three years, an additional $4,000 stipend each year, and a guaranteed paid, first-year summer fellowship at one of the world's top law firms.USC takes a holistic approach to choosing the Rothman Scholar, with selection criteria including strong academic indicators (LSAT and undergraduate cumulative GPA) and other factors from the applications that make the recipient stand out.

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