Beldock Levine & Hoffman LLP, Attorneys at Law

Elliot L. Hoffman

Elliot Hoffman is one of the three founding partners of Beldock Levine & Hoffman. An honors graduate of Harvard College and Yale Law School and an Editor of the Harvard Crimson and The Yale Law Journal, he began his professional career as law clerk to Judge Charles Froessel of the New York Court of Appeals.  He was subsequently appointed Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and, later, Counsel to the New York State Commission of Investigation.

In 1964, Elliot joined Myron Beldock and Larry Levine, two other former Assistant U. S. Attorneys, in forming the present firm, where he remains a full time senior partner specializing in the legal representation of performers, producers, writers, painters, composers and a vast galaxy of individuals and companies involved in the creative and performing arts and media.

Elliot’s civil litigation credits over the years include high profile and successful actions and/or defenses on behalf of Pablo Picasso, Luciano Pavarotti, Michael Crawford, Michelle Pfeiffer, Broadway Video, The Who, J. D. Salinger, Frank Zappa, The Newport Jazz Festival, Judas Priest and Tony Bennett.  Elliot’s current work is largely “transactional”, i.e. counseling clients and negotiating “deals” that arise out of a wide variety of arts and entertainment matters, including those that relate to rapidly evolving “new media” and digital technologies.

Elliot’s ventures have included conceiving and promoting the "Sunshine Showdown", the 1973 Frazier/Forman Heavyweight Championship Fight in Jamaica;  acquiring The Philadelphia Fury, a North American Soccer League franchise and serving as its Executive Director 1977-1981; and serving as a founding director of The Newport Folk Foundation, The New York Jazz Repertory Company , The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and as co-Trustee of the Eubie & Marion Blake Music Scholarship Fund.

He also plays tolerable jazz piano, vibes and soprano sax, rides a Harley and can be seen dancing with Cyndi Lauper  in her “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” video and soliciting charitable donations to Joey Ramone’s bank account in the Ramones’ “Something to Believe In” video.