Schulte advised IMP IM, LP (“Influence Media”) on the formation of Influence x Music Fund I, L.P. (“Fund”), a fund that targets investments in royalties, intellectual property and other contractual rights to proceeds from the sale, distribution, licensing or exploitation of music assets, with a focus on catalogs of the most influential female artists and songwriters. Influence Media is led by Founder and Co-Managing Partner Lylette Pizarro, and Co-Managing Partner Lynn Hazan. Prior to founding Influence Media, Pizarro spent over a decade “monetizing well-known music copyrights” with blue-chip brands for ads that aired during events including the Grammy Awards and the Super Bowl. Hazan, meanwhile, served a combined 15 years as General Manager & CFO of Epic Records and prior to that, RED Music.  The Fund has the potential to invest up to $100 million and has been established in partnership with Municipal Employment Retirement System (MERS of Michigan).

The Schulte team advising Influence Media was led by litigation partner Howard Schiffman, investment management partner Stephanie Breslow, M&A and securities partner Daniel Eisner and investment management special counsel Daniel Daneshrad. The team also included investment management associate Alexis Marion and tax partner David Griffel.

Tulsa-based civil and human rights attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons of SolomonSimmonsLaw, Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP and a team of civil and human rights lawyers have filed a lawsuit against the City of Tulsa, The Metropolitan Area Planning Commission, and the Tulsa Development Authority for denying access to specific public records related to the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre in violation of the Oklahoma Open Records Act. The filing is the latest legal action to help provide healing and justice to the survivors and descendants of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

In early January, Mr. Solomon-Simmons filed 11 separate open records requests with the City of Tulsa City Clerk and one request with the Tulsa Development Authority under the Oklahoma Open Records Act, seeking records related to the 1921 Massacre and its ongoing impact on the Greenwood District. In each case, his requests to receive the records within the customary 15 business days were ignored, and subsequent efforts to reach out to the defendants were either ignored or subject to stall tactics. Ultimately, The City of Tulsa’s legal department specifically interfered with the City Clerk’s legal obligation to comply with Mr. Solomon-Simmons’ requests in retaliation for Solomon-Simmons’ civil rights work against the City, writing, “[G]iven the fact that your firm currently represents parties adverse to the City in on-going litigation you are respectfully advised to immediately discontinue contact with our client [the City Clerk].”

The Schulte team is led by partner, litigation co-chair and pro bono chair Michael Swartz, special counsel for pro bono initiatives Sara Solfanelli and litigation associate and Task Force for Racial Justice Initiatives co-chair McKenzie Haynes. The team also includes litigation special counsel Randall Adams and associates Angela Garcia, Ekenedilichukwu (Keni) Ukabiala and Alex Wharton and law clerk Melanie Collins; individual client services partner Susan Frunzi, special counsel Annie Mehlman and associates Caitlin Fitzsimons, Victoria Harris and Hannah Zale; intellectual property, sourcing & technology special counsel Scott Kareff; environmental special counsel Theodore Keyes; investment management special counsel Jill Guzzetti; real estate law clerk James Koenderman; and former Schulte lawyers Amanda Barkin, AnnaLise Bender-Brown, Abigail Coster, Brandon Faske and John Garces.

Schulte represented Cerberus Business Finance LLC, in its capacity as Administrative and Collateral Agent for a syndicate of lenders under a $350 million credit facility, in connection with the restructuring of American Achievement Corporation, the world’s largest collegiate and high school commencement services company and an industry leader in digital product innovation. The restructuring and associated capital investment has given American Achievement Corporation a strengthened financial foundation to invest in its products, customers and the communities it serves. The deal also resulted in the appointment of a new board of directors and new chief executive officer.

The Schulte team advising Cerberus was led by business reorganization partner Adam Harris. The team also included business reorganization special counsel Peter Amend, associate Kelly (Bucky) Knight and law clerk Matthew Pinos; tax associate Joseph Reich; employment & employee benefits partner Ian Levin and special counsel Adam Gartner and Scott Gold; environmental special counsel Theodore Keyes; finance & derivatives partner Christopher Bell and special counsel Rami Kidouchim; intellectual property, sourcing & technology special counsel Scott Kareff; litigation partner Gayle Klein; real estate special counsel Amiel Mandel; former Schulte lawyers David Passey, Andrew Fadale, Christina Chaplygina, Avery Cummings, Nicolette Fata, Erik Hays, Jaclyn Malmed, Edward Sadtler, Samuel Schaffer and William Tevlin; and former Schulte law clerk Christina Welch.