Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz

Marcie Cleary is a partner in the Entertainment Group at Frankfurt Kurnit.  An experienced strategist and negotiator, Ms. Cleary structures media and entertainment deals for actors, athletes, writers, directors, producers, news correspondents, podcasters, social media influencers, and corporate clients. She represents individuals and companies across film, television, digital media, broadcasting, sports, and book publishing.

Ms. Cleary is widely regarded as one of the podcast industry’s most experienced lawyers. She has structured deals for creators, hosts, on-air talent, producers, and underlying rights holders.  Ms. Cleary has represented experienced and emerging comedians for more than a decade in negotiating deals for stand-up specials, scripted and unscripted series, films, and recorded albums.  She also represents current and retired athletes in negotiating brand endorsement, broadcasting, film and television, and entertainment deals, and in developing “off-the-court” media and entertainment ventures. 

Ms. Cleary has received numerous awards and recognitions from leading entertainment and legal industry observers. The Hollywood Reporter named her to its “Power” list of the Top 33 Attorneys for A-List Athletes, Teams, and Leagues in 2025, and to its “Power Lawyers” lists of top entertainment lawyers in New York in 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2026. Variety featured Ms. Cleary in its Legal Impact Report annually from 2020 to 2026, its Women’s Impact Report: New York in 2024, and its Dealmakers Impact Report in 2021, 2022, and 2025. Chambers USA included Ms. Cleary in its Entertainment & Media: Advisory ranking annually from 2023 to 2026. And Super Lawyers and Business Insider have recognized Ms. Cleary as one of the leading lawyers for entertainment, sports and digital creators and influencers. Ms. Cleary also has been recognized for her expertise in media, entertainment and sports by Best Lawyers in America (2021-2027), Lawdragon (2025-2026), and The Legal 500 (2022-2024).

Ms. Cleary began her legal career as a corporate associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, where she represented William Morris Endeavor Entertainment (WME) in its strategic partnership with Silver Lake, and Apollo Global Management in its acquisition of CKX, Inc., the rights-owner of the American Idol franchise and Elvis Presley Estate.

Ms. Cleary is a board member of Dance Theatre of Harlem, Comedy Gives Back, and RAISEfashion. She is an advisory board member of the New York University Lawyer Alumni Mentoring Program, and a former lecturer at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University. Ms. Cleary is admitted to practice in New York.