Howard Lloyd Weitzman (September 21, 1939 – April 7, 2021) was an American entertainment lawyer active in matters ranging from intellectual property and entertainment issues to family law and estate issues. He was notable for representing

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

's estate in the IRS case against it. His other famous clients included

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...

, O. J. Simpson, and

John DeLorean John Zachary DeLorean (January 6, 1925 – March 19, 2005) was an American engineer, inventor, and executive in the U.S. automobile industry, widely known for his work at General Motors and as founder of the DeLorean Motor Company. DeLorean man ...

. Weitzman was a founding partner at Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump LLP (KWIKA), a boutique litigation firm in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

Education

Weitzman completed his B.A. degree at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8. ...

(1962) and his J.D. degree at the University of Southern California

Gould School of Law The USC Gould School of Law, located in Los Angeles, California, is the law school of the University of Southern California. The oldest law school in the Southwestern United States, USC Law traces its beginnings to 1896 and became affiliated wi ...

(1965). He was admitted to the

State Bar of California The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate disciplin ...

in 1966.

Early career

Weitzman taught trial advocacy at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law for 12 years. From 1995 to 1998, Weitzman served as Executive Vice President, Corporate Operations for

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

, where he was responsible for corporate restructuring.

Legal career

For a time, Weitzman was a Certified Specialist in Criminal Law (the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization). In 1986, he became a managing partner at the law firm of Wyman Bautzer, and then in 1991 joined the law firm of Katten Muchin Zavis & Weitzman. In 1994, after Nicole Brown Simpson and

Ron Goldman Ronald Lyle Goldman (July 2, 1968 – June 12, 1994) was an American restaurant waiter and a friend of Nicole Brown Simpson, the ex-wife of the American football player O.J. Simpson. He was murdered, along with Brown, at her home in Los Angele ...

were murdered, Nicole's ex-husband, O. J. Simpson, was one of Weitzman's clients and soon became the primary suspect. Though Weitzman initially offered his legal help, after enough evidence was produced to suggest Simpson was the killer and put him on trial, Weitzman dropped Simpson as a client, forcing him to hire Robert Shapiro and

Johnnie Cochran Johnnie Lee Cochran Jr.Adam Bernstei ''The Washington Post'', March 30, 2005; retrieved April 17, 2006. (; October 2, 1937 – March 29, 2005) was an American lawyer best known for his leadership role in the defense and criminal acquittal ...

instead. Weitzman also appeared as a legal advisor in ''Murder One'' (1995), ''Murder in the First'' (2014), and ''Thank You for Smoking'' (2005). Weitzman died in Los Angeles from cancer on April 7, 2021, at age 81.

Awards and recognition

Weitzman twice won the

Jerry Giesler Harold Lee Giesler, known professionally as Jerry Giesler (November 2, 1886 – January 1, 1962) was an American trial attorney. Giesler was the defense attorney of record for many of the highest-profile litigations, both criminal and civil, in ...

Memorial Award as an outstanding trial lawyer in Los Angeles County.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Weitzman, Howard 1939 births 2021 deaths 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers American entertainment lawyers Deaths from cancer in California Lawyers from Los Angeles USC Gould School of Law alumni