Longtime Sony Pictures General Counsel Leah Weil Steps Down

After nearly three decades helping guide Sony Pictures Entertainment through transformative change and challenges, Leah Weil has decided to step down from her role as senior executive vice president and general counsel, SPE chairman and CEO Tony Vinciquerra said Tuesday.

“I have been extremely fortunate to spend the better part of my professional career here at SPE working alongside some of the best and brightest in the business,” Weil said in a memo.

Weil, SPE’s most senior legal adviser, has provided invaluable legal counsel and execution in determining the studio’s growth strategies and mergers and acquisitions. These have contributed to SPE’s successful turnaround over the years, including landmark deals like acquiring the Marvel IP rights for Spiderman.

As SPE’s top legal adviser since 1996, Weil has played a key role in guiding the studio through complex, unprecedented industry evolution and major events such as the restructuring of the Mandalay Pictures and MGM acquisitions in the 1990s and crises like the 2014 cyber-attack and COVID-19 pandemic.

Most recently, Weil led negotiations of historic labor deals in 2023 with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA deals.

In her expansive role, Weil oversaw all legal matters related to SPE’s global operations in motion picture, TV production, distribution, media networks, digital content as well as studio facilities and new entertainment technologies. Additionally, she oversaw Ethics & Compliance, Labor Relations, Music Business & Legal Affairs, SPE’s Global Policy and External Affairs as well as Corporate Social Responsibility efforts in philanthropy, community outreach and more.

Weil is an MPA board member and has been recognized as one of the 100 most powerful women in Hollywood. Her many honors include being named 2022’s Corporate Counsel of the Year by the LA Business Journal.

Read Vinciquerra’s memo to staffers below:

To:       All SPE
Fr:        Tony
Re:       Leah Weil
Dt:       January 9, 2024
 
After a distinguished 28-year career, Leah Weil has made the decision to step down from her role as General Counsel and transition to an advisory role.
 
Leah really doesn’t like to pat herself on the back, so allow me to do so…
 
First, it is hard to imagine SPE without Leah as our GC.  For many of us, Leah has always been there; a wise and trusted partner offering invaluable advice and counsel and driving the legal, regulatory and compliance strategies for some of SPE’s greatest challenges and successes. 
 
Leah joined Sony Pictures’ legal team in 1996.  With her outstanding intellect, work ethic and well-earned reputation, Leah quickly rose to the highest position in the legal group.  And during her time as GC, she transformed the entire legal operation into a fully integrated and essential part of our overall business.  A snapshot of Leah’s portfolio and oversight illustrates just how deeply woven into the fabric of SPE Leah is.  In addition to her responsibility for all internal and
external legal matters relating to SPE’s global operations, Leah also oversees our Ethics and Compliance and Labor Relations teams, SPE’s Music Affairs group, and the Global Policy and External Affairs function which includes our Corporate Social Responsibility group responsible for handling the studio’s strategic philanthropic efforts and community outreach activities. 
 
And in her nearly three decades at SPE, Leah really has seen it all.  From leading our efforts on historic and transformative deals, having a key role in hundreds of projects and strategic initiatives, playing an integral part of the studio’s transformation into the digital age, to guiding SPE through challenging crises such as the 2014 cyber-attack and the global COVID pandemic, to leading our efforts in the historic and extraordinarily challenging WGA and SAG-AFTRA
negotiations this year, to overseeing and executing the myriad day-to-day transactions that are critical to keeping all our businesses thriving.
  
Leah will continue to serve as GC for the next few months and will support a smooth transition to her successor.  In the coming weeks, we will have a chance to celebrate Leah and her many accomplishments, but in the meantime, please join me in thanking Leah for her exemplary service and dedication to the studio.
 
Tony

Read Weil’s memo below:

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

After more than three decades of making difficult decisions on a daily basis, I have recently made the most difficult one of my professional career. Upon careful consideration and after much reflection, I have decided to step aside from my role as the General Counsel of the Company.

This decision is most certainly not one that I made lightly or, as some of you know, quickly. But after thinking about my job and my life, I realized that after almost 28 years of an SPE career that has required a 24/7 commitment, what I wanted more is the stress free ability to focus on some personal priorities, to reconnect with friends, spend quality time with family, and to embark on adventures with my husband – all things I have wanted to do but neglected because of the time requirements of the job.

I have been extremely fortunate to spend the better part of my professional career here at SPE working alongside some of the best and brightest in the business.

As I reflect on my time here, I can honestly say it has been one heck of a ride! I have had the honor of leading fantastic teams and together we have achieved great success and shared countless unforgettable personal and professional moments. These teams have been at the forefront of discovering new ideas, coming up with innovative solutions to problems that seemed insurmountable, and living through times that have tested us all personally and professionally. Through it all you have remained the Company’s unflappable trusted advisers
and helped to advance the business in countless ways. I am so very proud of the lasting impact we have made and know you will continue to thrive in the future.

I am truly lucky to be able to say that I struggled with this decision. While there has never really been a “good” time to leave it does feel like the right time in my life to make this transition. I will deeply miss being an active part of the community we have built, but I am excited about the future and having the time to turn my attention back to things and relationships that have so often been pushed aside while I have been focused on the press of work.

I am very thankful to Tony, not only for his leadership, but also for his support as I grappled with my decision.

I will be staying on for a while to ensure a smooth transition and thereafter will stay connected to the Company in an advisory role, so don’t be surprised if from time to time you see me on the lot or in your inboxes.

With profound gratitude,

Leah

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