BIOGRAPHY

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DEGREES AND SPECIALIZATION
Stanford B.A.,1950; J.D., 1953. Admitted to practice in California, 1954. Specialist in business and entertainment
law since 1956.

ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY
Mr. Dern has been in-house counsel for various entertainment companies, including UPA, CBS, Desilu, and United Artist TV.
As the General Counsel for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (the Prime Time Emmys), in 2009 he was awarded the Television Academy's Syd Cassyd Founders Award, an Emmy honoring Mr. Dern  for over thirty years of service to the Television Academy as both a member and as its counsel.

Currently, he specializes in entertainment and related matters for individuals and corporations. Dixon's clients include production and distribution companies in film, television, and new media.

MEDIATOR AND ARBITRATOR
In addition to his specialty representing clients in television, theatrical, and additional entertainment areas, Mr. Dern acts as both a mediator and arbitrator in labor and commercial matters. For the past twenty-five+ years, he has served as a neutral arbitrator in entertainment and complex commercial matters.
  •  He is a neutral Arbitrator on the Producers/Writers Guild of America and Producers/ Directors Guild of America panels.
Dixon serves on the American Arbitration Association (AAA) Roster of Neutral Arbitrators:
  • He helped institute and serves as a neutral Arbitrator on the Independent Film & Television Alliance (American Film Market) Arbitration Panel and is a member of its Advisory Committee.
  • He is a volunteer mediator for the California Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, Mediation Program.

LECTURER
Respected for his knowledge and experience in entertainment law and arbitration, Dixon lectures at many locations:
  • USC Law School
  • USC's Film and Television School
  • Loyola University Law School in Los Angeles
  • San Diego University.
  • Bar functions on mediation and arbitration

TEACHER
Dixon has taught both online courses and an on-campus courses in dispute resolution. And he is currently teaching a negotiation course in the Behavioral Science Graduate Program for Negotiation and Conflict Management at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

IN ADDITION ....
Mr. Dern is a Past President of the Los Angeles Copyright Society,  Past President of the  Beverly Hills Bar Association, and a past member and Vice President of the California State Bar Board of Governors.
310-275-2003    ddern@dixlaw.com