Michael Perlstein is senior counsel in Reed Smith’s Entertainment & Media Industry Group, where he focuses on complex matters at the intersection of music and copyright law. With more than four decades of experience, Michael is widely recognized as one of the foremost authorities on music copyright, catalog transactions, and statutory termination rights.
Michael advises leading music artists, songwriters, publishers, producers, and their estates on a wide range of matters, including the purchase and sale of musical composition and master recording catalogs, copyright compliance, and general corporate and contractual issues. He has negotiated many of the most significant catalog transactions in the music business, long before copyrights became recognized as a distinct asset class. His work is regularly recognized by Billboard, which named him among its Top Music Attorneys from 2021 through 2024 for his role in record-setting catalog sales and other major industry transactions.
Michael has built a distinguished practice representing some of the most influential names in the music industry. He has also served as president of the Los Angeles Copyright Society and as an associate adjunct professor at Southwestern University School of Law, where he taught music publishing.
