The Seay Firm LLC

Atlanta Entertainment Lawyer

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John E. Seay, Esq.

John Seay outside at The Goat Farm Arts Center.
Sculpture by David Baerwald. Photo by Bonnie Heath.

The Seay Firm is an entertainment law firm located in Atlanta, Georgia. We are artist advocates, dedicated to advising and protecting all manner of artists and arts-related businesses.

Our founder, John Seay, is a former artist with a decade of experience in the entertainment industry as a musician, tour manager, and writer. John spent three years as Of Counsel in the entertainment practice group in the Nashville office of Loeb & Loeb and worked in the legal department at Turner Broadcasting before founding The Seay Firm in 2011.

In 2021, 2022, and 2024, John was named a Top Music Lawyer by Billboard. He has also been recognized as a Georgia Super Lawyer and a Georgia Trend Legal Elite multiple times, both in the fields of entertainment law. John has spoken about entertainment law at SXSW, the Americana Festival, and the AJC Decatur Book Festival, among many others, and is presently Immediate Past Chair of the State Bar of Georgia Entertainment & Sports Law Section.

John is a graduate of the University of Georgia School of Law, where he served as Executive Articles Editor of the Journal of Intellectual Property Law and President of The Sports & Entertainment Law Society. He’s also a father, and lives in Decatur, Georgia, with his two daughters. Follow John on Instagram: @TheSeayFirmLLC.

Recognition

Professional & Community Activities

Education

  • University of Georgia School of Law, J.D. (2010)
  • Birmingham-Southern College, B.A. (2003)

Quoted In

Selected Publications

Philip A. Ordonez, Esq.

Philip Ordonez. Photo by Bonnie Heath.

Philip Ordonez has been involved in the music industry in a variety of capacities since he was 13, when he began working at a large music festival in South Florida. From artist relations, to production, to performance, Philip has experience interfacing with artists, performing on stage, and working behind the scenes. He is a percussionist who toured regionally for several years and still occasionally plays around his current hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. Philip brings his wide range of experience to the table to assist in all aspects of the entertainment industry.

Philip is an honors graduate of the Emory University School of Law, where he served as a class representative and later as the VP of Entertainment for the Sports & Entertainment Law Society and he was also a founding executive board member of the first graduate student performance organization, the Emory Entertainment Alliance, which facilitated the first Emory Law School band, Disorder in the Court. Philip successfully completed the Transactional Law Certificate Program. Philip is proficient in Spanish.

For several years before and during law school, Philip worked at a national law firm as an insurance defense paralegal assisting on a variety of cases including motor-vehicle accidents, premises liability, and construction defect. For his first year out of law school, he worked as a litigator handling several high-profile premises liability cases for a boutique insurance defense firm before joining The Seay Firm.

Philip’s current practice includes assisting artists and businesses navigate the entertainment industry, from album clearances to music festivals.

Professional & Community Activities

Education

  • Emory University School of Law, J.D., with Honors (2020)
  • Auburn University, B.A. Sociology, Summa Cum Laude with Honors (2014) 

Certifications

  • Transactional Law and Skills Certificate – Center for Transactional Law and Practice (Emory University School of Law)(2020)

Haley Carlson

Haley Carlson. Photo by Bonnie Heath.

Firm Manager Haley Carlson is a dedicated arts leader, advocate, and enthusiast, with a passion to advance opportunities for creatives in Metro Atlanta and beyond. She has worked at large and small arts institutions alike, such as Dia: Beacon, Southern Highland Craft Guild, BluBus Screen Printing, and the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs. She received her master’s in Arts Leadership & Cultural Management from the LEAP Institute for the Arts at Colorado State University in 2017. Haley serves on the board of S.T.A.M.P. (Sustainable Touring for Artists, Musicians, and Performers) and is the co-founder of the Dream Warriors Foundation.

Directions

Our office is located at 750 Piedmont Ave. NE, Atlanta, GA 30308 — Piedmont Ave. is a one-way street. Drive north on Piedmont Ave. and take a

Our office is located at 750 Piedmont Ave. NE, Atlanta, GA 30308 —

TRAVELING NORTH: Piedmont Ave. is a one-way street. Drive north on Piedmont Ave. and take a left turn onto 4th Ave. (two-way street) and then take the first right turn, about halfway up the block, into an alley street. Take the very first right into a gravel parking lot, park anywhere, and then call the office at (404) 913-4232. Someone will come and grab you from the lot. Alternatively, if there is a parallel space on Piedmont Ave., then feel free to take it, and then call the office.

TRAVELING SOUTH: Drive south on Juniper Street (one-way street) and take a left turn onto 4th Street (two-way street) and then take the first right left, about halfway up the block, into an alley street. Take the very first right into a gravel parking lot, park anywhere, and then call the office at (404) 913-4232. Someone will come and grab you from the lot. Alternatively, if there is a parallel space on Piedmont Ave., then feel free to take it, and then call the office.

The Seay Firm is located at 750 Piedmont Avenue NE, Atlanta, GA 30308. Call (404) 913-4232 or contact us to schedule an appointment.