Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law Commons^™

A Look Inside The Nba’S Game-Changing Technical Foul: The Warner Bros. Discovery And Nba Broadcast Rights Dispute And How It Could Have Been Resolved Through Alternative Dispute Resolution, Nicola Coates

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Despite being “the greatest studio show in sports TV history” and winning numerous Emmy Awards, the TNT Sports icon Inside the NBA was on the brink of disappearing. In 2024, the National Basketball Association (NBA) opted into a $77 billion contract with NBC, Amazon, and Disney’s ESPN, ending its forty-year relationship with Warner Brothers Discovery (Warner Bros. Discovery), the parent company of TNT Sports. Warner Bros. Discovery filed suit, alleging that, by rejecting its offer in favor of NBC, Amazon, and Disney, the NBA breached the parties’ 2014 media rights agreement, which included a right to match third-party offers. The …

Constitutional Law Application In The Sport Industry, Barbara Osborne

Marquette Sports Law Review

No abstract provided.

Forward Progress: The Rooney Rule And Its Post-Sffa Relevance, N. Jeremi Duru

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

In 2003, the National Football League (NFL), which had long struggled with racial inequity both on and off the field, implemented a policy known as the Rooney Rule, requiring that any league club searching for a head coach interview at least one person of color before making a hire. In the over two decades since, employers of all sorts seeking to increase opportunities for people of color and women have adopted a form of the Rule. Indeed, it has gained traction from coast to coast. Hundreds of American employers utilize the Rooney Rule or a policy derived therefrom. In the …

A Transformative Standard For Transformative Times: Protecting Student-Athlete Speech In The Era Of Name, Image, And Likeness, Kyle Saxon

William & Mary Law Review

As an entirely new and developing area of the law, NIL [name, image, and likeness] further complicates the existing struggles in determining how NCAA student-athletes should be viewed by the law in the employment context. Such a determination is crucial to understanding the extent of student-athletes’ First Amendment protections. Even as NIL drives the law further in the direction of student-athletes becoming employees of the university, student-athletes are still undeniably enrolled students of the university, and scholastic achievement is still a primary consideration for college athletics.

This unique relationship between student-athletes and their institutions necessitates an entirely new standard for …

The Liv Golf V. Pga Tour Antitrust Case As A Case Study In Federal Civil Procedure, Michael J. Dube

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

This Article uses LIV Golf Inc. v. PGA Tour, Inc., a sophisticated and headline-grabbing antitrust matter, as a means of instantiating federal civil procedure concepts. The first Part of this Article addresses the unsuccessful motion for a temporary restraining order that in many ways shaped how the litigation proceeded. The second Part examines the dance that is discovery through a focus on a drawn-out dispute regarding a single interrogatory. The final Part drills down on a more novel discovery dispute that began the path towards settlement, namely whether the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 and related common-law doctrine …

Tennessee V. Nat'l Collegiate Athletic Ass'n: Contracts - Name, Image And Likeness, David Draper

Transactions: The Tennessee Journal of Business Law

No abstract provided.

Breaking Cultural And Financial Barriers In Olympic Sports, Maureen A. Weston, Professor Of Law

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Nelson Mandela has said that “[s]port has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does . . . . It is more powerful than governments in breaking down barriers.” Sports can have tremendous value, not only to the individual participants in promoting physical and mental health, skills, and teamwork, but also to society in fostering community, civic pride, and a sense of belonging, even among the fans. Sports have significant economic, political and cultural impacts at the local, national, and international spheres. …

The Future Of College Sports After Alston: Reforming The Ncaa Via Conditional Antitrust Immunity, Nathaniel Grow

William & Mary Law Review

In June 2021, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court issued its eagerly anticipated decision in National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston, ruling for the first time that NCAA rules governing student-athlete eligibility are subject to full scrutiny under federal antitrust law. Although the immediate impact of the Alston decision was rather modest—merely requiring the NCAA to allow its schools to compete by offering prospective players education-related benefits such as laptop computers and stipends for future graduate-level study—the Court hinted that it was prepared to extend the logic of this ruling much further, calling into question the legality of the NCAA’s …

The Ncaa's Rise To Absolute Power And Confronting Its Distortion Of Amateurism, Terek J. Kirsch

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

This paper examines the progression of the intercollegiate athletic space, from a small regatta in 1852 to the massive athletic environment we know now in contemporary society. It finds the National Collegiate Athletic Association snared in a trap of circular logic that has been closing in on it since its conception, as it has defined collegiate athletes as amateurs and then proceeded to argue for amateur status for those athletes because of the definition that it wrote. This paper concludes in its final two chapters, after analyzing the recent Supreme Court case NCAA v. Alston, and the Name, Image, and …

Points Of No Return: How The Ninth Circuit’S New Voluntary Undertaking Doctrine Changes Return-To-Play In Sports, Sam C. Ehrlich

University of San Francisco Law Review

No abstract provided.

A More Just, Inclusive Future For Sports, Dionne L. Koller

All Faculty Scholarship

This issue of the Journal of Legal Aspects of Sport (JLAS) was dedicated to women in sports law, with a specific emphasis on inclusiveness and new ideas. For decades, the central focus of the law and policy directed to women and sports was Title IX enforcement and securing opportunities for participation. As we approach Title IX’s 50th anniversary, it is clear that the law has greatly expanded participation opportunities for women and powerfully altered the norms around women and sports. Nevertheless, much work remains. Women and girls still do not enjoy the full measure of equality that Title …

Antitrust Changeup: How A Single Antitrust Reform Could Be A Home Run For Minor League Baseball Players, Jeremy Ulm

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

In 1890, Congress passed the Sherman Antitrust Act to protect competition in the marketplace. Federal antitrust law has developed to prevent businesses from exerting unfair power on their employees and customers. Specifically, the Sherman Act prevents competitors from reaching unreasonable agreements amongst themselves and from monopolizing markets. However, not all industries have these protections.

Historically, federal antitrust law has not governed the “Business of Baseball.” The Supreme Court had the opportunity to apply antitrust law to baseball in Federal Baseball Club, Incorporated v. National League of Professional Baseball Clubs; however, the Court held that the Business of Baseball was not …

Liability Redefined: The Application Of Agency Law To An Athletic Booster's Relationship With An Ncaa Member Institution, Jennifer Lee

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This comment draws parallels between agency law and the role of athletic boosters in a university context. This comment suggests that universities should not be held liable for the actions of third-party boosters unless the university had knowledge of the booster’s conduct or lacked an adequate system of internal controls.

Just Say No To The Cheap Double Play, Richard D. Friedman

Reviews

The Infield Fly Rule has drawn a considerable amount of attention from legal scholars for nearly half a century. Much of the writing, in keeping with the tone of the keynote work discussing the rule, the famous Aside by William Stevens published in the University of Pennsylvania Law Review in 1975, has been whimsical and ironical. But the Aside was also a genuine piece of legal scholarship. And now, Howard Wasserman has written a book—an entire book!— on the rule, and done so without whimsy or irony.

Clear Statement Rules And The Integrity Of Labor Arbitration, Stephen Ross, Roy Eisenhardt

Arbitration Law Review (2009 - Present)

Under the common law, employment contracts are submitted to civil courts to resolve disputes over interpretation, breach, and remedies. As an alternative, parties in collective bargaining agreements, can agree to dispute resolution by an independent arbitrator, whose decision is reviewed deferentially by judges. Where employees or members of an association are governed by its internal rules, in contrast, they often agree contractually to submit internal disputes to an association officer or committee. In this circumstance, the common law governing private associations affords judicial review that is more limited than a civil dispute, but more searching than is the case for …

2017 Annual Survey: Recent Developments In Sports Law, Jordan Lysiak, Katherine Hampel

Marquette Sports Law Review

None

In Search Of The Final Head Ball: The Case For Eliminating Heading From Soccer,, N. Jeremi Duru

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Soccer is unquestionably the world's most popular sport. Two hundred and eleven countries have national soccer associations, hundreds of millions of people across the globe play recreationally, and Federation Internationale de Football Association's ("FIFA") quadrennial World Cup soccer tournament is unchallenged as the highest profile4 and highest grossing sporting competition on Earth. Notwithstanding its popularity, however, soccer sits at a troubling crossroads as the sport's governing bodies grapple with the impact that the risk of brain injury is having on the game. Soccer is, of course, not alone in this regard. The risk of brain injury exists in all team …

An American Football Team In London: How Tax Consequences For International Athletes Could Affect The Success Of A Potential Nfl Franchise In London, Brett Smith

The Business, Entrepreneurship & Tax Law Review

Although the NFL has not announced any definite plans to place a team in London, it has taken significant steps in that direction. By 2022, it could be a reality. As the laws in the U.S. and U.K. currently stand, NFL athletes playing for a team in London would face more income taxes than if they played for a U.S.-based team. The extra tax liability the players would face in the U.K. could prevent players from signing with the London team. If the London franchise struggles to field talent, it will struggle on the field as well. Without reform in …

Groomed For Exploitation! How Applying The Statutory Definition Of Employee To Cover Division Ia College Football Players Disrupts The Student-Athlete Myth, Anne Marie Lofaso

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Utah And Sports Law, Adam Epstein

Marquette Sports Law Review

None

Why Sports Law?, Sherman J. Clark

Articles

This essay argues that sports law can be more than just a fascinating and topical subject with great appeal to those who work or hope to work in the field. It can also be a valuable intellectual and pedagogical enterprise—even for those who do not or will not work in sports. In particular, sports law can be a useful and clarifying lens through which to study the law more broadly. This is because sports enterprises and issues tend to put unique and potentially illuminating pressures on the law. Ordinary or unexamined assumptions often break down or prove inadequate when confronted …

Conservation Force Et Al. V. Delta Air Lines: The Legality Of An Airline Ban On Big Game Hunting Trophies, Daniel Spivey

DePaul Journal of Sports Law

No abstract provided.

Fraudduel And Draftkrooks: Chance Or Skill?, Erica M. Boos

DePaul Journal of Sports Law

No abstract provided.

Sports Law In Law Reviews And Journals, Katelynn Hill

Marquette Sports Law Review

No abstract provided.

Ohio And Sports Law, Adam Epstein

Marquette Sports Law Review

None

Barriers To Leadership In Women's College Athletics, Erin E. Buzuvis

Faculty Scholarship

Today there is an enormous gender disparity among collegiate head coaches and athletic administrators in the United States. Women fill less than a quarter of head coach and athletic director positions in college athletics and are even minorities among coaches of women's teams. Few other professions are as impervious to gender integration. Leadership in college athletics is, in the words of one scholar, one of the "few male bastions remaining," which raises the question: Why are women so starkly underrepresented in leadership positions within college athletics? There is no easy answer, but rather a variety of factors that exclude, deter, …

Dick Woodson's Revenge: The Evolution Of Salary Arbitration In Major League Baseball, Edward Silverman

Pepperdine Law Review

This paper examines the evolution of salary arbitration in professional baseball through the lens of the original 1974 Dick Woodson salary arbitration. Part II discusses the general development of labor relations in professional baseball, with an emphasis on how and why salary arbitration came to be implemented. Part III focuses specifically on Dick Woodson’s salary arbitration and how that experience shaped the immediate evolution of the practice and informed the current state of affairs in Major League Baseball (“MLB”). Part IV discusses MLB’s salary arbitration rules and how the process actually works. Part V addresses prevailing criticisms of baseball style …

Foot Faults In Crunch Time: Temporal Variance In Sports Law And Antitrust Regulation, Jeffrey Standen

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Modest Proposal For Taming The Antitrust Beast, Gabe Feldman

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

An Antitrust Exemption For The Ncaa: Sound Policy Or Letting The Fox Loose In The Henhouse?, Daniel E. Lazaroff

Pepperdine Law Review

This Article focuses on the issues presented by the debate over granting the NCAA an exemption from federal antitrust law. Part II briefly describes the history of antitrust litigation involving the NCAA. Part III discusses some of the proposals for affording some type of antitrust immunity to the NCAA. Part IV explains the rationales utilized for some of the numerous antitrust exemptions Congress and the Supreme Court have created for some businesses and forms of commercial activity. Part V addresses the question of whether any of those rationales justifies providing the NCAA with a legislative or judicial antitrust exemption and …