Nick Swimer

He has acted as counsel to various advertising industry bodies, helped draft the US advertising trade body’s media buying template agreement and has contributed to various industry advertising reports including in relation to programmatic supply chain transparency issues.

Nick trained at Nabarro (now CMS) and after 5 years joined Channel 4 as Head of Legal for Advertising, Governance and Regulatory Affairs and acted as Board Secretary to   the Channel 4 board.

In 2011, Nick joined Reed Smith as a partner in the Entertainment & Media practice, where he headed up the TV & Film group supporting broadcasters and producers in relation to content production, distribution and M&A and advised media owners, ad-tech intermediaries and brands on advertising sales and marketing issues. As a leading legal authority in advertising sales, Nick has negotiated global media buying agreements for some of the world’s leading brands, ensuring that brands have robust agreements in place which are not open to exploitation. He also advises media owners in relation to commercial, content distribution, operational and regulatory matters.

In 2015, Nick brokered the deal between Channel 4 and Sacha Baron Cohen to set up Sacha’s UK production vehicle, Spelthorne Community Television. He subsequently joined Spelthorne as its commercial director whilst maintaining his legal practice, where he managed Spelthorne’s legal and business affairs scripted and non-scripted slate, oversaw finance and distribution and associate produced several programmes. Nick rejoined the Reed Smith partnership full time in 2021.

Nick joined Lee & Thompson in 2024 and is recognised as a leading partner in the legal directories in respect of his advertising and marketing work, providing invaluable client support, understanding the media industry intimately and providing client-focused, pragmatic advice.