Richard B. Heller
Richard B. Heller is a partner at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, PC. a former Managing Partner of the firm and a longtime member of the Entertainment Group.
He is also currently the Co-Chair of the Celebrity Branding Group. His practice focuses on motion pictures and television, new media, publishing, celebrity branding and intellectual property. His clients include on-screen talent, writers, producers, directors, production companies, financiers and distributors in the motion picture and television fields, as well as creative individuals, executives and companies active in a wide range of media platforms (including best-selling authors as well as magazine publishers and other media companies). He handles independent film clients from acquisition of rights through financing, production and exploitation of projects. Mr, Heller’s cross-border practice focuses on representing foreign individuals, estates, companies and cultural institutions when they do business in the United States.
For the Celebrity Branding Group practice. Mr. Heller works extensively with prominent authors, doctors, chefs, models, designers and other celebrity clients, as well as global brands, He actively counsels his clients in managing their valuable intellectual property rights and implementing fully coordinated strategies for exploiting motion picture, television, print, audio, electronic new media, merchandising, licensing and other rights.
Mr. Heller was recognized by Variety in its 2019 Dealmakers Elite NY issue. He is also listed in Best Lawyers in America for his work in entertainment law (Motion Pictures and Television); ranked by Chambers USA America’s Leading Lawyers for Business as a top-rated lawyer in media and entertainment; named a New York-area “Super Lawyer” in the field of entertainment and sports by Super Lawyers magazine from 2006-2025; chosen by New York Magazine as one of the New York area’s best entertainment lawyers; and listed among the country’s leading media and entertainment lawyers by The Legal 500. He is a member of the New York City Bar Association (Member, Committee on Entertainment and Sports Law, 1984-Present); and the American Bar Association (Member: Section on Patent, Trademark and Copyright Law; Forum Committee on the Entertainment and Sports Industries, 1979-Present). He was an Adjunct Professor of Law, New York University School of Law, from 1985 to 1987.
Mr. Heller is a graduate of Brown University (B.A., 1974) and the New York University School of Law (J.D., 1977). He is admitted to practice in New York.