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Siegmar Pohl

Dr. Siegmar Pohl

Of Counsel

San Francisco

415.989.5900

Expertise

Mr. Pohl's particular expertise covers commercial agreements in media, IT, and entertainment, as well as in the high-tech and transportation industries. In particular:

IT/Technology Agreements

• Provide legal advice to high technology clients in technology transactions including R&D, know how/technology transfer, manufacturing, purchase, supply and cooperation agreements. Draft and negotiate complex information technology agreements including those related to development, distribution, reselling and making available of hardware, software, databases and content as well as consulting and technical services; hosting, e-commerce and other Internet-related agreements.

Corporate Transactions

• Conduct and supervise due diligence activities for share and asset purchase & sale transactions (M&A) with IP/IT-related issues; "corporate housekeeping".

Licensing

• Negotiate international technology and software licenses and support agreements, equipment purchase and support agreements; developed a comprehensive flowchart for software developers and distributors concerning Open Source license requirements.

Intellectual Property

• Responsible for copyrights, clearings and chain-of-title opinions.

Commercial Contracts

• Draft and negotiate international commercial contracts including supply and purchase contracts, maintenance, manufacturing contracts and other cooperation contracts.

His recent experience includes:

• Provided legal advice for high-tech clients in technology transactions.
• Negotiated technology and know how license as well as research and development agreements.
• Structured the financing of international film co-productions.
• Commercial, athlete and player agreements for an international athletics competition and for a first league soccer club.
• Unfair competition litigation concerning advertising/sponsoring at major European sports event.
• Clearance work for pan-European advertising campaigns.
• Negotiated satellite transponder, teleport and cable distribution agreements.
• Structuring software (and system) license agreements; drafted flowchart for open source license agreements.

Publications

• "Legal Aspects of Doing Business in the US," Symposium & Workshop at the occasion of the Official Visit of the Saxon Minister of State for Environment and Agriculture to California, San Francisco (October 2008)
• Contracts in Advertising - Professional Drafting and Negotiation, Cornelsen, 2007
• Challenges of Copyright Law in the Digital Age: The German Legislator's Attempt to find a Solution - Second Basket, commentary, Bureau of National Affairs (BNA) World Intellectual Property Report, 07/2006, p 32-34, and BNA World Communications Regulation Report, 07/2006, p 31-33
• Deregulation of 'New' Telecom Markets in Germany, BNA World Communications Regulation Report, 07/2006, p 7-8
• At the Interface to Market Power - The Perpetual Case Microsoft Before the European Court of First Instance, Börsen-Zeitung, Dr Siegmar Pohl, LL.M., Tom Pick, LL.M (May 3, 2006)
• Sponsorship in German, International sales and Marketing Practice Manual (10 March 10, 2005
• New Frontiers, Advertising, Marketing and Branding Law Journal, (October/ November 2004)
• Nutzung von engen Spielräumen - Betriebsstättenproblematik bei internationalen Koproduktionen, Blickpunkt: Film, Spezial: Film Fonds 2003, October 2003, S 7
• Medienfonds - Quo Vadis?, MultiMedia und Recht, October 2003, 621
• Die Risikobewertung bei der Freisetzung gentechnisch veränderter Organismen - Eine vergleichende Studie des Rechts der Vereinigten Staaten und der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin, 2002 (Schriften zum Technikrecht)
• The Licensing Regime under German Telecommunications Law: Implementation and Interpretation, Comment, co-author with Karl H. Pilny, Computer and Telecommunications Law Review, Vol. 4, 1997