Jake Bloom, the veteran entertainment lawyer of Bloom Hergott, is retiring from his namesake law firm after decades, shortly before a trial begins for a $50 million malpractice suit brought by the firm’s ex-client Johnny Depp.
Alan Hergott, Bloom’s longtime partner who has represented Brad Pitt, Kathleen Kennedy and Neil Patrick Harris among others, is also stepping down, and the law firm has already gotten a new name, Goodman Shenckman & Brecheen, or “GSB.”
“It has been a true privilege to represent some of the most talented people in entertainment and media over so many years,” Bloom said in a statement to Deadline Monday night. “While I will miss my clients and colleagues, now is the right time for this evolution. It is an exciting opportunity for everyone involved and I look forward to watching GSB optimize the new media landscape for its clients and continue to grow in the future.”
Depp took his former attorney to court in October 2017 in a $30 million suit, alleging that his lawyer cost him “tens of millions of dollars” through the “unauthorized taking of Mr. Depp’s film residual and other economic rights for themselves” as well as via “conflicts of interest, self-dealing, legal malpractice” and other means.
The legal fight has continued for two years, and Depp, now represented by Adam Waldman, won a legal battle in August in which Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Terry Green declared invalid the oral deal Depp had with Bloom. A trial date is now set for Sept. 16, with a trial setting conference on May 29. Bloom’s team is attempting to push the trial to next spring.