Preti Flaherty has the largest Media Law practice group in northern New England, representing leading media trade associations, publishers, and broadcasters throughout the region and nation. We are known for our vigorously proactive First Amendment practice, and work in partnership with our clients to strengthen their power to gather and disseminate information. We have had great success effecting changes in the laws and defending against legislation adverse to the media, including enacting Maine’s first journalist’s shield law. Our media attorneys have secured favorable judgments and verdicts for top news networks and publications, including Forbes, WGME-TV (a CBS affiliate), ESPN, Yankee Magazine, and the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, as well as major corporations, such as Walmart and others, in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and beyond.

With extensive experience in the field, we leverage a diverse and innovative arsenal of skills and tactics in service to our clients in all areas of media law, including:

  • First Amendment litigation, including defamation and privacy litigation
  • Freedom of information litigation in state and federal court
  • Copyright and trademark litigation
  • Prepublication review
  • Libel and privacy advice
  • Protection of newsgathering and editorial processes, including defense of criminal and civil subpoenas on the new media

Leaders in the Field

The attorneys in our Media Law practice group stand at the forefront of the media law community. We are members of the counsel section of the Media Law Resource Center and authors of the Maine chapter in its widely used 50 State Survey of Media Libel Law in the United States. We also author the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit or Maine chapters in several publications by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. Our team includes board members of the New England First Amendment Coalition and the Maine Freedom of Information Coalition.

Backed by the full resources of Preti Flaherty and its sophisticated multidisciplinary approach, and with deep roots in the service of the institutions and organizations we counsel, our Media Law practice group offers clients a vital combination of insight and action that makes us a standard bearer for success.

Firm Highlights

News

14 Preti Flaherty Attorneys Selected as Chambers USA Leaders in Their Field

Fourteen Preti Flaherty attorneys and six practice groups have been selected for inclusion in the 2023 Chambers USA Guide to America's Leading Lawyers for Business , the highly regarded directory of leading attorneys and...

Publication

H-2B Visa Program Summary

The H-2B classification allows foreign nationals who are citizens of certain named countries, with limited exceptions, to accept temporary non-agricultural employment in the United States, after the employer has obtained temporary labor certification by...

Press Coverage

Authorities Refuse to Release Records for Maine School Shooter Hoax Calls

On November 15, 2022, multiple law enforcement agencies in Maine received false calls alerting police to active shooter situations at several high schools throughout the state. In the wake of this widespread hoax, the Kennebec...

Publication

Post Sackett: What Is the Scope of the Clean Water Act?

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) rendered a decision in Sackett et ux. v. EPA addressing what Justice Alito referred to as a “nagging question” of what water bodies are covered under...

Publication

Bankruptcy Court Injects Uncertainty in Municipal Tax Foreclosures

Last October, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maine issued a ruling of concern for municipalities. The case ( In re Riendeau , 645 B.R. 321 [Bankr. Me. 2022] ) established that...

News

Maine Justice Foundation Opens Applications for the 2023 Access to Justice Tax Credit

The Maine Justice Foundation is pleased to announce that applications for the 2023 Access to Justice Tax Credit Program will open on June 1, 2023. The Foundation will accept applications from eligible attorneys from...

Publication

Municipal Update: Effect of Recent Supreme Court Decision on Sale of Tax Foreclosed Properties

Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court issued its opinion in  Tyler v. Hennepin County, Minnesota  (598 U.S. _____ (2023)). The Supreme Court held that Hennepin County had violated the Fifth Amendment’s takings clause by...

News

Maine Justice Foundation LGBTQ+ Fund Seeks Applications for 2023 Grants

The Maine Justice Foundation is pleased to announce a round of grants from the LGBTQ+ Fund. The Foundation will accept applications for grants from organizations working to advance awareness and understanding of LGBTQ+ issues...

Event

Bodie Colwell joins ethics panel at the Northeast Bankruptcy Conference & Northeast Consumer Forum

An annual conference, this year's Northeast Bankruptcy Conference and Consumer Forum will focus on sophisticated financial scenarios practitioners often face and provide insights on current consumer bankruptcy issues. Preti Flaherty's Bodie Colwell is a...

Press Coverage

Oxford Police Chief: Officer Tried to De-escalate Pursuit Before Fatal Crash

Officials from the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office have refused to provide documentation of the department's policy on police chases following the fatal high-speed crash of Nicholas Liebowitz in Gray, Maine, on Friday, April 28, 2023. Chief...