Sports Litigation Alert Current Issue
Here’s the latest issue of Sports Litigation Alert, the nation’s only subscription-based periodical reporting on the intersection of sports and the law. We also publish 11 other sports law periodicals. Visit hackneypublications.com to learn more.
Case Summaries
Two ‘Greek Freak’ Lawsuits over the Same Trademark Lead to Different Outcomes
By Jana S. Farmer and Adam R. Bialek The owner of the trademark Greek Freak™, 2021 NBA Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, received different outcomes in two seemingly similar trademark infringement actions heard by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of...
Arizona Case Pits Environmentalists Against S.F. Giants’ Training Facility
By Gary Chester, Senior Writer Public objections over sports facilities are often directed at tax subsidies, but in one notable case it’s all about the environment and quality of life. In Norgaard-Larsen v. City of Phoenix, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 128673, (D. Az. 2021),...
Federal Judge Refuses to Dismiss Action Seeking to Classify Student-Athletes as Employees
By Gregg E. Clifton and John G. Long, of Jackson Lewis A case that may signal the continued erosion of the amateur status of college student-athletes will continue as the action in Ralph “Trey” Johnson et al. v. NCAA has survived the...
Phillies get the Best of Phanatic Creators – for Now
Score one for the Philadelphia Phillies in its long-simmering battle with the creators of the Phillie Phanatic mascot after a federal magistrate judge ruled in August that the changes the Phillies made to the mascot were sufficient to allow the continued use of the...
Magistrate Judge Breathes Life into Plaintiff’s Disability Claim, Arising from Past Concussions
A magistrate judge from the Southern District of Texas has found mistakes in an administrative court’s decision, which denied the application of a former NFL player for disability insurance benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act. Thus, the court granted...
Articles
What’s in a Name (Image or Likeness)? Quite a Bit for Star College Athletes
By Matthew Savare, Bryan Sterba, and Zachary Bocian, of Lowenstein Sandler Many years ago, the state of the law regarding name, image, and likeness issues (“NIL” or right of publicity) was once described as a “haystack in a hurricane.” Such a description...
Lack of Governance Around NIL Concerns Leading Sports Business Professor
Dr. Jim Riordan, the founder in 2000 of the MBA Sport Management program at Florida Atlantic University, has always had a keen interest in trends and developments that shape collegiate athletics. In 2003, he served as a special consultant to the chair of the FAU...
NIL and the Impact on High School Sports
By Hannah Dewey While the NCAA has stated that high school students may engage in the same types of NIL opportunities available to current student-athletes under its interim policy without impacting their NCAA eligibility, the same might not be true for high school...
University of the Cumberlands Sued for Wrestler’s Death – Brace v. Cumberlands
By John T. Wendt, J.D., M.A. Grant Brace was a very good high school wrestler and football player in Alcoa, Tennessee. He went on to wrestle at the University of Cumberlands in Kentucky. In August of 2020, Grant’s third year, the wrestling team began...
Attorney Warns College President of Lawsuit If School Does Not Comply with Title IX
One of the nation’s leading Title IX attorneys for plaintiffs, Arthur H. Bryant of Bailey & Glasser (www.baileyglasser.com), has suggested to Dickinson College President John E. Jones, III that the school is out of compliance with Title IX and a lawsuit may be...
Former University of Minnesota Lineman Sues School, Conference, and NCAA
The NCAA is being forced to play defense again after a former University of Minnesota (UM) offensive lineman filed suit against the association, as well as the Big Ten conference and the school, claiming that the defendants’ negligence contributed to multiple...
Attorney Analyzes Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s Ruling in Onyshko
The NCAA may be losing court cases on multiple fronts, but when it comes to concussion litigation, the association appears to be holding its own. Most recently, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court refused to reconsider a lawsuit brought by a former college football player,...
Lawsuit Alleges Former University of South Alabama Head Women’s Volleyball Coach Sexually Harassed Abused Former Players
A former NCAA Division I head women’s volleyball coach sexually harassed, and physically and emotionally abused her players for several years, according to a federal lawsuit filed last week in Alabama. The case was brought by several former University of South Alabama...
Sports Lawyer John Mack Named Director of Athletics at Princeton
John Mack, who has previously held the title of student-athlete, coach, and administrator at Princeton University, has added another role to his resume – Director of Athletics. He succeeds Mollie Marcoux Samaan, who announced in May she would be stepping down to take...
News Briefs
Webinar Examines the ‘Dos and Don’ts of Advertising in iGaming’
IDEA, the voice of the online gaming and betting industries in the U.S., will host one of its “Power Lunch” webinars on September 13 at noon EST, addressing the “Dos and Don’ts of Advertising in iGaming.” The webinar, which lasts one hour, will “explore one of the...
AG Sues Biden Administration to Stop Enforcement of Guidance that Threatens Women’s Sports and Student and Employee Privacy
Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III, leading a 20-state coalition, filed a lawsuit in the Eastern District of Tennessee today. The complaint seeks to stop the Biden Administration from enforcing new, expansive, and unlawful interpretations of federal...
Spry Announces Partnership with The Atlantic East Conference to Manage Compliance with the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) Movement
The Atlantic East Conference and Spry announced last week a conference-wide partnership to help each school manage the NIL compliance landscape. In a proactive move, conference leadership will assist in providing Spry software to all seven of the Atlantic East...