Casey Schwab, the Chair of the ABA Sports Division of the Forum on the Entertainment & Sports Industries, has announcement of the appointment of several new officers, including Dan Werly as Vice Chair and Nicole Duckett Fricke as Advisory Committee members as well as Onye Ikwuakor, Meghan Kane, and Maacah Scott as Standing Committee members.
Werly is a partner at Sievert Werly LLC, a boutique law firm dedicated to serving clients in the sports industry. He has experience working with professional teams, leagues, universities, and athletes on a wide array of legal issues with a primary focus on complex civil litigation. He is also the Managing Editor of the sports legal website The White Bronco.
Nicole Duckett Fricke is General Counsel and Vice President for the LA Clippers where she has built a Legal Department from the ground up as the organization’s first in-house counsel, creating legal structure for the company and cementing operational infrastructure. In this role, she serves as the team’s chief legal officer and advises on all strategies for driving and protecting the business, best practices implementation, corporate governance, compliance and ensuring successful outcomes.
Onye Ikwuakor is the Legal Affairs Director of Emerging & Pro Sports for the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. In this role, Onye has primary responsibility for providing legal advice and oversight in support of USADA’s non-Olympic sport initiatives, including the adjudication of cases arising under USADA’s professional and combat sport anti-doping programs. Onye also serves as a point of contact for other USADA departments on a multitude of issues, including athlete testing strategies, copyright and trademark issues, human resource matters, and the creation and review of legal contracts executed by USADA.
Meghan Kane is Assistant Counsel for the National Football League, supporting the League’s business entities, including National Football League, NFL Media, NFL Films and NFL International. She is a commercial transactions attorney and business executive with five years of litigation experience and six years of experience as corporate generalist.
Maacah Scott is Staff Counsel for the Arizona Diamondbacks. She drafts and negotiates contracts with employees, sponsors, vendors, and independent contractors. Scott also handles issues related to trademarks, international relations, risk management, and assists with litigation. Scott is an associate professor at Arizona State University, where she teaches Ethics and Legal Issues in Sports.
Other Advisory Board Committee members include:
Ahron Cohen, General Counsel, Arizona Coyotes
David Cohen, General Counsel, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Jason Hillman, VP/General Counsel, Cleveland Cavaliers
Ahmad Nassar, President, NFL Players, Inc.
Travis Tygart, Chief Executive Officer, U.S. Anti-Doping Agency
Other Standing Committee members are:
John Driscoll, Associate, Steinhilber Swanson Resop & Sipsma
Caleb E. Jay, Senior Counsel, Arizona Diamondbacks
Laura Warren, Senior Associate General Counsel, DePaul University
