ABOUT

Introduction

Dan Adams is a co-founder and director of Arbor Law with more than 20 years’ experience advising media and technology businesses on both legal and strategic matters.

He began his career in 1999 at City law firms Olswang and Baker McKenzie before moving in-house as Senior Counsel at AOL Time Warner. He then completed an MBA at the University of Oxford and spent several years in senior business development and strategy roles at some of the world’s most recognisable media and technology businesses, including EMI, National Geographic, Dailymotion and ZEFR — before returning to legal practice and co-founding Arbor Law in 2019.

This combination of City law training, in-house experience, executive leadership and first-hand involvement as a founder and investor gives Dan a perspective that is genuinely unusual in a legal adviser. He understands the pressures, decisions and trade-offs that founders and leadership teams face, not just as a lawyer looking in, but as someone who has been in the room.

Dan has particular experience advising scale-ups from Series A through to exit, and his legal work spans corporate finance, M&A, IP licensing and data privacy.

Behind the lawyer

Outside work, his main passions are (1) his family, with three young boys keeping him on his toes at all times; (2) sport – he’s a lifelong Harlequins fan, and also enjoys playing golf, tennis and, paddle; and (3) wine – not just drinking it, but studying it too, having completed a number of wine-tasting exams. (The order of importance is as set out above, although it has been known to vary from time to time…)

Education

University College London
LLB
College of Law, London
LPC
Oxford University
MBA

Previous roles

ZEFR (2012 - 2014)
VP International Business Development & Strategy
Dailymotion (2010 - 2012)
VP International Content
Livestation (2008 - 2010)
Managing Director
EMI, National Geographic, Fremantle Media (2007 - 2008)
Strategy Consultant
AOL Time Warner (2004 - 2006)
Senior Counsel
Baker McKenzie, Technology, Media & Telecommunications (2001 - 2004)
Commercial Solicitor
Olswang (now CMS) (1999 - 2001)
Solicitor

Areas of expertise

Where Dan can help

Dan Adams is unique in the fact that his experience in media and start-ups allows him to bring common sense to decision-making. He balances the legal risks of a situation against the commercial value.
Legal 500
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