David Halberstadter, a partner in the Litigation and Dispute Resolution and Entertainment and Media practices, obtained a landmark ruling from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of The Hurt Locker filmmakers and distributors, as noted in Law360. The lawsuit was filed by Master Sergeant Jeffrey S. Sarver, an Iraqi war bomb disposal expert, who argued that the main character of The Hurt Locker was based on his life, infringing his publicity rights and defaming him. The court recognized the movie's content as protected by the First Amendment, ruling, "The Hurt Locker is speech that is fully protected by the First Amendment, which safeguards the storytellers and artists who take the raw materials of life—including the stories of real individuals, ordinary or extraordinary—and transform them into art, be it articles, books, movies, or plays." ("1st Amendment Saves 'Hurt Locker' In Publicity Row: 9th Circ.," February 17, 2016)