Katherine Neukomm Wants You To Get Your Bag
The New York-based lawyer, who was formerly counsel to Vogue and W Magazine, now represents creative talent and fashion businesses. And she's making sure everyone is winning, fair and square.
By Megan O'Sullivan
Photos by Morganne Boulden
Published
Katherine Neukomm is a California-bred, New York-based lawyer — one that you definitely would't want to come up against. Sure, she's a soft-spoken, fashion-loving, art-educated glamour girl. But her words are sharp and, to put it simply, her brain works really well. Despite her roots, Katherine doesn't relate to the relaxed nature of Californians. "It's a bit of a mismatch. I am the living embodiment of whatever the opposite of laid back is," she tells me. The lawyer came up at Condé Nast, where she was a legal associate for Vogue and W.
Now, as Manhattan's it-girl lawyer, Katherine owns her eponoymous law practice, KJN. She represents creative talent and small businesses. In this economy, where the individual is often the entity, her craft is more important than ever before. Read on for how she ensures everyone is getting their deserved justice and their bag.
Let’s start from the beginning. What was your first job?
I was a salesperson at Fred Segal, which lived up to its name (and seems to have opened recently on Lafayette Street). I was in the section called FUN which among other things specialized in Juicy Couture, which meant I soon had a drawer in my UCLA dorm room designated for terry and another for velour, which I always think of as an integral part of my college education.
What was your longest job? And tell us, in your words, what your doing now.
I was in-house at Condé Nast for a number of years before launching my law practice, KJN, ESQ. There I was the designated associate for Vogue and W, and later, became general counsel for W when it was sold in 2019. I was that person who had never thrown a copy of Vogue away, so you can imagine what it was like to negotiate contracts on behalf of the magazine and to access the archives in the name of rights research. In a word: formative. When I launched my law practice, I went from representing the publications to representing talent, but the milieu remains the same. I now represent a number of creative talent agencies as well as individual photographers, artists, writers, content creators and strategists, fashion brands and of course, Byline.
What inspired you to become a lawyer?
I chose mainly based on which profession would allow me to wear the greatest number of blazers. My negotiations always seem to go better in something dark blue and double-breasted.