Santiago “Sam” Fernandez
Class of 1980
Executive Vice President & General Counsel, Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles, CA
Sam Fernandez joined the Los Angeles Dodgers as General Counsel on June 1, 1984. He was assigned the additional responsibilities of Assistant Secretary in 1987 and Secretary in 1998. In 2000, he was promoted to Senior Vice President & General Counsel, and in 2018, he was given the title of Executive Vice President & General Counsel.
During his tenure with the Dodgers, Fernandez has been responsible for overseeing all of the team’s legal affairs. His duties have included negotiating and drafting contracts with the team’s broadcasting partners, concessionaires, sponsors, and players, licensing the team’s marks and other intellectual property, leasing the stadium for concerts and films, and supervising all litigation. He was actively involved in each of the three sales of the team that have taken place during the past 30 years. In addition to his duties as General Counsel, Fernandez has also overseen the Human Resources department since 2010.
Fernandez has worked on matters ranging from the establishment of the Dodgers’ training facility in the Dominican Republic in 1986 to serving on the Board of Directors of Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. He has also served on the boards of directors of Los Angeles Dodgers, Inc., Major League Baseball Enterprises, Inc., The Pediatrics and Family Medical Foundation in Los Angeles, the Southern California Chapter of the American Corporate Counsel Association, and the Leadership Advisory Board for the Association of Media & Entertainment Counsel. Fernandez has also served on the Board of Advisors for the Loyola Law School Sports Law Institute and the Advisory Board for the Chapman University Fowler School of Law Business Emphasis Program.
Previous Experience
Associate, Latham & Watkins
UC Hastings Activities
Senior Research Editor, Hastings Law Journal
Alumnus of the Year, Los Angeles Chapter of the University of California, Hastings College of the Law (2002)
Awards
Professional Achievement Award, Mexican American Bar Foundation (2015)
America’s 50 Outstanding General Counsel, National Law Journal (2014)
Corporate Counsel Award, Los Angeles Business Journal (2014)
Outstanding Corporate Counsel of the Year, Los Angeles County Bar Association’s Corporate Law Departments Section (2013)
Top 20 General Counsel in California, Daily Journal (2012)
Best of 2012, Hispanic Executive
Sports Counsel of the Year, Association of Media & Entertainment Counsel (2009)