STARZ (NASDAQ: STRZ) announced the appointment of Jim Kapenstein as Chief Legal and Strategy Officer. Kapenstein will start next week and report directly to STARZ President and CEO Jeffrey Hirsch.

In his new role, Kapenstein will oversee business and legal affairs including distribution, content acquisition, production, litigation, employment matters and regulatory compliance. He will also lead strategic corporate transactions and mergers and acquisitions while managing corporate governance responsibilities.

Kapenstein spent nearly three decades at The Walt Disney Company, most recently serving as Deputy General Counsel where he managed the company's corporate team. At Disney, he oversaw mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, antitrust matters, corporate finance and strategic transactions.

During his tenure at Disney, Kapenstein led major business transactions including the acquisitions of 21st Century Fox, Lucas Films, Marvel and Pixar. He also worked on ESPN's equity investment with the NFL and transactions involving BAMTech, Hulu and Fubo.

Before joining Disney, Kapenstein worked as a senior associate at Alston & Bird, focusing on mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures and corporate governance. He began his career at Arent & Fox in Washington, D.C.

"Few executives bring the breadth of experience Jim does with his involvement in some of the largest transactions in media history," Hirsch said in a statement.

Kapenstein will be based in STARZ's Santa Monica office.