Law Commons^™

Custom’S Last Stand: Why Mlb Trusts Tradition To Police Player Conduct And The Nfl Doesn’T, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

More Than Just California Dreamin.Pdf, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

God Almighty Hisself: The Life And Legacy Of Dick Allen, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

Dick Allen Preferred Not To: A Reconsideration Of Baseball's Bartleby, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

During the course of his major league career, Dick Allen did a lot of things: he was the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year and the 1972 AL Most Valuable Player; his 351 home runs are more than Hall of Famer Ron Santo, his 1119 RBI’s are more than Hall of Famer Rod Carew, and, for those who pray to the alter of sabermetrics, his “adjusted OPS+” is higher than the greatest slugger of all time, Hall of Famer Hank Aaron. Because of all that he did, the MLB Network in 2012 ranked him as a member of its “Top …

Who Exempted Baseball, Anyway?: The Curious Development Of The Antitrust Exemption That Never Was, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article takes a fresh look at baseball’s alleged antitrust exemption and explains why, after all, the exemption is alleged rather than actual. For contrary to popular opinion, this article concludes that the Supreme Court’s 1922 Federal Baseball Club decision did not exempt Organized Baseball from federal antitrust laws. Instead, the opinion was much more limited in scope and never reached the question of whether Organized Baseball should be treated differently than other, similarly situated businesses or institutions, although Organized Baseball clearly invited the Justices to make this determination in its brief to the Court. As this article discusses, the …

A People's History Of Baseball, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

Baseball is much more than the national pastime. It has become an emblem of America itself. From its initial popularity in the mid-nineteenth century, the game has reflected national values and beliefs and promoted what it means to be an American. Stories abound that illustrate baseball's significance in eradicating racial barriers, bringing neighborhoods together, building civic pride, and creating on the field of play an instructive civics lesson for immigrants on the national character. In A People's History of Baseball, Mitchell Nathanson probes the less well-known but no less meaningful other side of baseball: episodes not involving equality, patriotism, heroism, …

Truly Sovereign At Last: C.B.C. Distribution V. Mlb Am And The Redefinition Of The Concept Of Baseball, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article is the second in the author’s series examining the interplay between baseball and the law (the first being The Sovereign Nation of Baseball: Why Federal Law Does Not Apply To “America’s Game” And How It Got That Way, 16 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 49 (2009)). The Sovereign Nation of Baseball provided the groundwork for this series by discussing how federal courts have historically deferred to those who have traditionally run Major League Baseball (the office of the Commissioner of Baseball as well as the cabal of club owners), bending the rules that would otherwise dictate the resolution …

The Happy Lawyer Handbook, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

Each year, thousands of men and women make a decision that will ultimately change not only the course but the quality of the rest of their lives: they decide to become lawyers. From the moment that thick congratulatory envelope arrives, accepting and welcoming them to law school, they begin their journey down a road they hope will lead them to a life of worth (both personal as well as financial) and self-satisfaction. Unfortunately, too often, this road leads instead to despair which oftentimes plummets to depths that eventually cause them to leave the practice of law or, more often, remain, …

The Phillies, Connie Mack Stadium, And Philadelphia’S Mid-Century Racial Identity, Mitchell Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

No abstract provided.

What's In A Name, Or, Better Yet, What's It Worth?: Cities, Sports Teams And The Right Of Publicity, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article examines the harm that accompanies real and threatened in-market relocations of professional sports teams and proposes a federal statutory remedy that will protect the interest of city residents given the reality that city governments have demonstrated their inability to adequately protect their electorate through contract law alone. Although, as this article discusses, there have been myriad bills proposed by Congress in response to several high profile out-of-market sports franchise relocations (mostly those involving NFL teams and mostly during the 1990’s), in-market relocations have historically occurred much more frequently, inflicting similar harms to the spurned city residents. Moreover, as …

Major League Baseball As Enron: The True Meaning Of The Mitchell Report, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

Although the December 13, 2007 release of the Mitchell Report received attention for the names of the players included within, what was overlooked by many was the true import of the report: namely, the indictment of Major League Baseball itself as a corrupt entity. As such, the players identified as steroid abusers within the report were merely reflections of the larger, systemic problem that existed for decades within MLB rather than the problem in and of themselves. This article examines this revelation in detail.

The Sovereign Nation Of Baseball: Why Federal Law Does Not Apply To "America's Game" And How It Got That Way, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article examines the relationship between Major League Baseball (MLB) and the law and discusses how it has evolved that MLB has become unofficially exempt from federal law on a wide range of issues due to its unique status within American society. Although its antitrust exemption is well-known, MLB has, in practice, not been subject to the forces of federal law in many other contexts as well, setting it apart from most other corporations and organizations – even other professional sports leagues such as the NFL, NHL and NBA. As a result of the wide berth provided to MLB by …

Dismantling The "Other": Understanding The Nature And Malleability Of Groups In The Legal Writing Professorate's Quest For Equality, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article examines the nature of groupings within law school faculties and analyzes why some groups are inherently considered in-groups whereas others (in particular, legal writing faculties) are considered out-groups. The article first explores the science behind the unconscious mind and why we categorize individuals the way we do. Next, this article demonstrates that members of an undesired out-group can be easily transformed into members of the more desirable in-group by modifying the relationships among individuals. This is particularly important to members of the legal writing professorate because, although groups themselves are nothing more than artificial compositions of the unconscious …

The Fall Of The 1977 Phillies: How A Baseball Team's Collapse Sank A City's Spirit, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

Too often, the Philadelphia sports fan has been dismissed as a lout, a boorish dolt immune to reason, his vocabulary whittled down to a singular “boo.” This is particularly true when it comes to Phillies fans, who are more likely to turn on their team than any other in the city. Although the Eagles, Sixers and Flyers may hear it from the rafters when they’re not going well, only the Phils will hear it when they are. The strained relationship between the city and the Phillies, however, has deep historical and sociological roots; roots that directly correlate with the city’s …

The Continental League And The Push For Expansion In Major League Baseball, Mitchell Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

No abstract provided.

Mlb Franchise Relocation Pursuant To Its Antitrust Exemption: A Distinction Without A Difference, Mitchell Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

No abstract provided.

Gatekeepers Of Americana: Ownership's Neverending Quest For Control Of The Baseball Creed, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article examines owner-player relations from the founding of the National League in 1876 to the present and concludes that the owners’ repeated refusal to negotiate with the players’ union throughout the 1970’s and early 1980’s were merely additional chapters in their ongoing quest to position themselves as the sole protectors of what has become known as the “baseball creed” and all that is symbolic of baseball as metaphor for traditional American values. In order to maintain their status as the lone gatekeepers of the American values supposedly embodied and taught by baseball, it has always been necessary for ownership …

Taking The Road Less Traveled: Why Practical Scholarship Makes Sense For The Legal Writing Professor, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article examines the issue of scholarship as it pertains to the legal writing professor. While the old adage that you should “write what you know” applies universally – to fiction as well as non-fiction and to scholarship written by the legal writing professor as much as it does to the doctrinal professor, the question this article attempts to answer is this: given that legal writing is a “skills” rather than “substantive” course, just what is it that legal writing professors, at least as compared to their doctrinal counterparts, know? Through the analysis of an original professional background survey of …

The Irrelevance Of Major League Baseball's Antitrust Exemption: A Historical Review, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article examines Major League Baseball’s (MLB) antitrust exemption from a practical, historical perspective and concludes that it is largely irrelevant to the actual (as opposed to theoretical) workings of the business of baseball. This article focuses first on the exemption’s supposed protection of baseball’s “reserve clause” and finds that it was irrelevant to its creation in 1879 as well as its demise in 1975. Despite the exemption, the reserve clause has always been subject to challenge under contract law and it was a simple argument based on contract law principles that led to its eventual dismantling. This article then …

It's The Economy (And Combined Ratio) Stupid: Examining The Medical Malpractice Litigation "Crisis" Myth And The Factors Critical To Reform, Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This article examines the recurring medical malpractice litigation crisis with an eye toward pinpointing the elusive source of the problem. My thesis is that these crises have recurred every decade or so and will continue to recur indefinitely because the root cause has never been specifically identified. As a result, it is no surprise that reform attempts have proven to be universally ineffective. It is my conclusion that malpractice litigation reform has repeatedly failed because, contrary to the widely held view, there has never been a medical malpractice litigation crisis, per se. Rather, there have been cyclical insurance crises through …

The Tell-All Hurler: Jim Bouton And "Ball Four", Mitchell J. Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

This chapter examines whether the information released within Bouton's "Ball Four" constituted legally protectable infomation and whether Major League Baseball (MLB) could have sought legal recourse as a result of the release of the book. This chapter concludes that while the "secrets" revealed by Bouton most likely did not constitute trade secrets, they may nevertheless still have been protectable under a lesser classification of commercial information. As such, MLB may have been able to pursue a case against Bouton for a possible breach of his fiduciary duty of loyalty to his employer.

Celebrating The Value Of Practical Knowledge And Experience, Mitchell Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

No abstract provided.

Litigation And Regulatory Issues Affecting Managed Care (Co-Author), Mitchell Nathanson

Mitchell J Nathanson

No abstract provided.