Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law Commons^™

Beyond Amateurism: Examining The Potential Labor Expenses Of Ncaa Student-Athlete Employment, Alayna K. Falak

Honors Thesis

In light of recent administrative developments urging the classification of student-athletes as employees, litigation challenging the current status of student-athletes, and the Supreme Court’s willingness to tackle National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) issues, many questions surrounding the future of college sports under an employment model have emerged. The authors analyzed key litigation, recent developments from administrative agencies, and academic literature. Then publicly available data was used from the NCAA, the United States Department of Labor (DOL), and other sources to construct two estimates of what it would cost the NCAA member institutions to treat their Division I athletes as employees. …

The Dawn Of A New Era: Antitrust Law Vs. The Antiquated Ncaa Compensation Model Perpetuating Racial Injustice, Amanda L. Jones

Northwestern University Law Review

Two crises in 2020 fueled the fire underlying a debate that has been smoldering for years: whether student athletes should be compensated. The COVID-19 pandemic coincided with the Black Lives Matter movement and drew unprecedented attention to systemic racism permeating society, including college sports that rely disproportionately on Black men risking physical harm to support an entire industry. The Supreme Court’s decision in NCAA v. Alston opened the door for some athletic conferences to offer student athletes unlimited education-related benefits and called out the NCAA’s business model that relies on not paying student athletes under the justification of amateurism. Alston …

Blood, Sweat, Tears: A Re-Examination Of The Exploitation Of College Athletes, Keely Grey Fresh

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

2021 Louise Halper Award Winner for Best Student Note

The unrest revolving around compensation for college athletes is not a new concept. However, public attitudes are shifting. With spirited arguments on both sides, and the recent Supreme Court decision of National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston regarding antitrust exemptions, the issue has been placed in a spotlight. This Note examines the buildup of discontentment through the history of the NCAA and amateurism, specifically how the term “student-athlete” became coined. It will then move to litigation efforts by athletes in an attempt to gain employment status, and an alternative route of …

A Commitment To The Whole Athlete: Embracing The Role Of Cannabinoids In Collegiate Athletics, Kelli Rodriguez Currie

Seattle University Law Review

Cannabinoids can be a highly effective way for athletes to combat various kinds of pain associated with intense training. Derivatives of cannabis, such as marijuana, have been used for centuries as a form of pain relief. Part I of this Article discusses how cannabinoids are used in sports medicine. Part II discusses the different approaches to marijuana and cannabidiol use across sports leagues. Part III highlights the inconsistencies between the NCAA’s approach to testing for substance abuse and its investment in student-athletes’ well-being. Part IV discusses how the NCAA must focus on student-athlete health. Finally, Part V concludes that the …

Compensation Is All-American: Former College Football Star Chris Spielman’S Case Against His Alma Mater And How It Could Affect The Ncaa’S Amateurism Rules, Jason Mcintyre

Pace Law Review

The lawsuit, Spielman v. IMG College, arose when Ohio State University (“OSU”) entered into a marketing deal through their marketing agency, IMG College (“IMG”), with corporations Honda Motor Co. (“Honda”) and Nike USA Inc. (“Nike”), to hang banners depicting images of former college athletes at school sporting events. Charles “Chris” Spielman, the named Plaintiff and former NCAA football player at OSU, brought this lawsuit because he claims that OSU and IMG unreasonably and illegally restrained trade by denying him the right to profit from his name, image, and likeness.

This case plays a role in the ongoing conversation of whether …

The Blue Devil's In The Details: How A Free Market Approach To Compensating College Athletes Would Work, David A. Grenardo

Pepperdine Law Review

Everyone involved in the business of major college athletics, except the athletes, receives compensation based on a free market system. The National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) cap on athlete compensation violates antitrust law, and athletes should be allowed to earn their free market value as everyone else does in this country. This Article provides a detailed approach to compensating college athletes under a free market model, which includes a salary cap, the terms of a proposed standard player’s contract, a discussion of who can represent players, and payment simulations for football and basketball teams. A free market approach would not …

Dump And Chase: Why The Nfl, Nba, And Mlb Should Abandon Their Problematic Amateur Draft Age Limits And Rookie Wage Structures And Adopt The Current Nhl Model, Zach Leach

Marquette Sports Law Review

None

Is The Ncaa Finally Loosening Its Iron Grip On College Basketball By Allowing Underclassmen The Opportunity To Return To College After Declaring For The Nba Draft?, Neil Patel

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Oversight Committee has proposed a new rule that allows undergraduate college basketball players to reject the National Basketball Association (NBA) and return to school after they have submitted their name for the draft. This rule represents a great change in the policies that regulate college sports, specifically college basketball. The NCAA has ruled college basketball with an iron fist, but with this new proposal, it seems that it is beginning to help our college athletes sustain some semblance of a normal life after their playing days are over. Importantly, the rule is merely a …

How Organizing Collegiate Student-Athletes Under The National Labor Relations Act With The Ncaa As A Joint Employer Can Lead To Significant Changes To The Student-Athlete Compensation Rules, Andrew Gruna

Pace Intellectual Property, Sports & Entertainment Law Forum

This paper will provide an overview of how National Labor Relations Board cases of Northwestern University and Browning Ferris combined with the analysis presented in the National Labor Relations Board General Counsel Memorandum GC 17-01: General Counsel’s Report on the Statutory Rights of University Faculty and Students in the Unfair Labor Practice Context could impact the laws behind unionization, the contracts of university athletes, and, ultimately through contract negotiations, reintroduce the discussion regarding compensation of student-athletes.

Student-Athletes Vs. Ncaa: Preserving Amateurism In College Sports Amidst The Fight For Player Compensation, Audrey C. Sheetz

Brooklyn Law Review

While student-athletes are the backbone of the $11 billion college sports industry, they do not currently receive any of this revenue derived from the use of their names, images, and likenesses. The National College Athletic Association’s mission is to maintain the amateur status of student-athletes. In doing so, it precludes student-athletes from receiving any type of compensation outside of the actual cost of tuition. Amateurism, as a concept, promotes the distinction between professional and student athletes, and is the crux of the NCAA’s argument for prohibiting the compensation of student-athletes. Recently, however, the controversy surrounding the amateur status of college …

The End Of An Era: The Mounting Challenges To The Ncaa’S Model Of Amateurism, John Niemeyer

Pepperdine Law Review

In the six years between 2006 and 2012, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), a nonprofit organization made up of universities, doubled its net assets to its current, unprecedented level of over $566 million. In 2012 alone, the organization retained a $71 million surplus after it disbursed a majority of its revenue to the NCAA member universities. It was able to make this much money largely because of the television revenue earned from the highly popular and entertaining sports of men’s football and men’s basketball. One would think that if a nonprofit organization could retain $71 million at the end …

Varsity Blues: Student Athlete Unionization Is The Wrong Way Forward To Reform Collegiate Athletics, Michael P. Cianfichi

Maryland Law Review

No abstract provided.

A European Solution To America’S Basketball Problem: Reforming Amateur Basketball In The United States, Jaimie K. Mcfarlin, Joshua Lee

Jaimie K. McFarlin

The system of amateur and collegiate basketball in America is flawed, as every year, thousands of young men and women pursue their basketball dreams under the shadow of a multi-million dollar, predatory business model. Integral to telling the history of the NCAA and AAU organizations are recruiting horror stories and other examples of young talents who were taken advantage of by unscrupulous actors, both of which continue today. The commercialization and professionalization of amateur basketball has fed an ecosystem of exploitation in which private actors and institutions capitalize on the American mantra of "amateurism." The European system of amateur athletics …

I’M The One Making The Money, Now Where’S My Cut? Revisiting The Student-Athlete As An “Employee” Under The National Labor Relations Act, John J. Leppler

Pace Intellectual Property, Sports & Entertainment Law Forum

This Article argues why the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) Big-Time Division I College Football and Men’s Basketball student-athletes are legally “employees” and why these student-athletes are inadequately compensated for their revenue-producing skills.

Part II of this Article sets forth the common law “right of control” test and the National Labor Relation Act’s (NLRA) special statutory test for students in a university setting, and shows how the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the judiciary determine whether a particular person, specifically a university student, meets these standards and is legally an “employee”. Moreover, the NCAA asserts it does not have …

Taxing Missy: Operation Gold And The 2012 Proposed Olympic Tax Elimination Act, Kathryn Kisska-Schulze, Adam Epstein

Adam Epstein

The purpose of this article is to explore the legal and tax environment surrounding the August 1, 2012 bill referred to as the Olympic Tax Elimination Act (OTEA) which was introduced in the U.S. Senate to exempt from gross income the prize money earned by U.S. Olympians from the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) for earning a gold, silver or bronze medal. The OTEA came at a time when American economic growth has been stagnant, and income tax issues became a hotly contested political debate for the 2012 Presidential election. The article explores how tax issues have weaved their way …

Surveying Colorado Sports Law, Adam Epstein

Adam Epstein

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview and explore some of the major sports law cases that have emanated from within the four corners of the state of Colorado or maneuvered through Denver’s Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Colorado is a prime location for a wide range of cutting edge cases, decisions, discussions and events which have an impact on the relationship between sports and the law among the professional, amateur and recreational environments. Legal issues at Colorado-based educational institutions appear to have an affinity for and history of exposing and challenging the authority of NCAA policies.

Exploring Ethical Issues And Examples By Using Sport, Adam Epstein, Bridget Niland

Adam Epstein

The purpose of the paper is to offer suggestions to engage your students when arriving at the ethics portion of your business law, legal environment, or sports law course. With due respect given to the classic theory of ethics, the paper offers ethical issues in the context of sport at all levels, including youth sport, interscholastic, intercollegiate, professional and the Olympic Games. Unique topics include sport-related fraud, the use of performance-enhancing drugs and technology, raging parents, running up the score, and whether the myriad of NCAA bylaws genuinely reflect and promote fundamental principles of amateurism, sportsmanship, and education.

Gambling And Collegiate Athletics, Adam Epstein, Bridget Niland

Adam Epstein

The article discusses concerns involving intercollegiate sports gambling. It explores the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules known as Bylaws. The article also outlines and explores a history of notable college sports gambling incidents involving individuals and NCAA schools. The article also reviews relevant federal and state laws.

Sports Agent Litigation And The Regulatory Environment, Adam Epstein

Adam Epstein

Some of the more important civil and criminal cases involving the litigious history of the sports agent business are discussed. The article provides the fundamentals of the regulatory environment in which sports agents (many of whom are lawyers) operate. While discussion of sports agency is not novel, the collection of major cases coupled with the current state of the regulatory/business environment provides the reader with a solid basis for future consideration or research. The appropriate state and federal laws are explored in detail. The role that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) plays in “regulating” sports agents is also discussed.

Utilization Of The National Collegiate Athletic Association (Ncaa) Manual As A Teaching Tool, Adam Epstein

Adam Epstein

This article provides instructors with some ideas as to how they can incorporate the Division I NCAA Manual into their own course without having to reinvent the wheel. Part I offers a brief history of the NCAA and provides the proper context for the particular provisions of the Manual. Part II focuses on the Manual itself, including discussions of principles and themes found within its borders, the connection of the Manual to traditional legal and sports law topics, and offers examples of some oversights and curious provisions for comic relief.

Presenter, “The Bca And The Ncaa: How Title Vii May Level The Playing Field In The Collegiate Coaching Ranks”, N. Jeremi Duru

Presentations

In January 2007, only 5% of the 119 head coaches in Division I-A college football teams were minorities. This number is startling in light of the fact that in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football teams 55% of the student-athletes are from minority groups. Even the president of the NCAA, Myles Brand, has stated that this organization has had a “dismal record of hiring people of color into head coaching positions, especially in the sport of football.” The disparity between the numbers of coaches and players has prompted an action brought by the Black Coaches & Administrators (BCA). The BCA …

Texas Supreme Court Denies Student-Athlete's Property Right Claim, Adam Epstein

Adam Epstein

Discussion of the case involving swimmer Joscelin Yeo and the troubles she faced involving NCAA rules when trying to transfer from UC-Berkeley to UT-Austin between 2000-2001. The decision went to the Texas Supreme Court ruling against her and in support of NCAA transfer rules.

Whistle-Blowing And The Continued Expansion Of Title Ix In Jackson V. Birmingham Board Of Education, Adam Epstein

Adam Epstein

A study of the history and importance of the 2005 Supreme Court decision that expanded Title IX to include a private right of action for individuals who reveal Title IX violations even though they themselves were not subject to sex discrimination. The case involved Roderick Jackson a high school coach from the Birmingham, Alabama area.

Alternative Dispute Resolution In Sport Management And The Sport Management Curriculum, Adam Epstein

Adam Epstein

The article covers the basics of alternative dispute resolution (ADR). It then demonstrates how the instructor can utilize and incorporate ADR to effectively teach in sport management classes and sports law at the intercollegiate level.