Sally A. Buckman

Sally A. Buckman is Senior Counsel at Lerman Senter, where she focuses her practice on regulatory and business issues affecting the media industry. With decades of experience, she has advised a wide range of clients, including large broadcast companies, family-owned media groups, trade associations, lenders, and on-air talent. Her work covers the full spectrum of media law, from major transactions to complex regulatory compliance.

Sally earned her J.D. from New York University School of Law and her B.A. with honors from Wellesley College, where she studied economics with a focus on regulated industries.

Sally specializes in media transactions and strategic agreements. She has led high-value deals involving the acquisition and sale of media properties ranging from $75,000 to over $1 billion. Her expertise includes drafting and negotiating retransmission consent agreements, programming contracts, syndication deals, tower leases, and sports rights agreements. She is especially adept at structuring transactions to comply with FCC ownership rules and resolving intricate operational challenges.

Sally’s notable achievements include assisting a major PBS station in acquiring its first noncommercial radio station and serving as counsel in a successful Supreme Court case that upheld relaxed FCC media ownership rules, reversing a lower court decision. Her contributions directly impacted regulatory policies, benefiting broadcasters and newspaper companies.

Sally A. Buckman is ranked by Chambers and Partners in Telecom, Broadcast, and Satellite Law and has been listed in Best Lawyers in America (2016–2024) and Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers (2014–2023). She is admitted to the District of Columbia Bar and several federal appellate courts. Sally is also a member of the Alliance for Women in Media and the Federal Communications Bar Association. Through her deep industry knowledge and strategic legal counsel, she remains a leading voice in media and communications law.

Law Office Affiliations

• Senior Counsel, Lerman Senter
• Member, District of Columbia Bar Association
• Member, Alliance for Women in Media
• Member, Federal Communications Bar Association

Licensed State

• District of Columbia

Education

• New York University School of Law
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• Wellesley College
  Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Awards & Badges