MPA appoints top attorney

Karyn Temple will join the Motion Picture Association (MPA) on January 13 as senior executive vice president and global general counsel, reporting to chair and CEO Charles Rivkin.

Temple, whom the association describes as ‘one of the world’s leading authorities on copyright’, previously spent more than eight years at the US Copyright Office (USCO), most recently as the register of copyrights. In that role she administered US copyright law and advised members of Congress, federal courts and executive branch agencies on copyright law and policy. She testified a number of times before both the US House of Representatives and the US Senate, and oversaw the office’s policy and legal departments.

Temple led the 400-person USCO’s divisions representing law, policy, international affairs, financial operations, registration practice, public records and outreach and education.

Before heading the USCO, Temple was in charge of its office of policy and international affairs. She served on both US delegations for the most recent World Intellectual Property Organization treaties. She has also served in a senior policy role at the US Department of Justice as senior counsel to the deputy US attorney general.

Washington, DC-based MPA has a presence in 27 countries. In her new role, Temple will oversee all of the association’s legal affairs and content-protection efforts around the world. Its member studios are Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Netflix, Paramount Pictures Corporation, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Universal City Studios and Warner Bros Entertainment.

‘The film industry has seen a tremendous amount of change recently, with new business models and huge growth around the world.  I look forward to joining the wonderful team at the [MPA] as it continues to explore new and innovative ways to support and sustain the film community on a global scale,’ Temple says in a statement.

‘I can think of no better person than Karyn Temple, one of the world’s leading experts on copyright, to help us advocate for our members’ global film, television and streaming businesses at this pivotal time of transformation in the industry,’ Rivkin says in a statement. ‘Strong copyright is the foundation of the creative economy, and Karyn’s knowledge and expertise will ensure we continue to protect and promote the industry’s ability to successfully share [its] stories with audiences around the world.’