Foley & Lardner LLP announced last month that labor and employment attorney Jonathan L. Israel has joined the firm’s Sports Industry Team and Labor & Employment Practice as a partner in the New York office.
For nearly 20 years, Israel has served clients from a variety of industries ranging from professional, collegiate and Olympic sports to transportation, financial services, retail, entertainment and media. Previously, Israel served as assistant general counsel for the National Basketball Association, where he advised the league and its affiliated entities and teams on complex litigation and labor, employment and general corporate matters. In private practice, Israel has continued to represent professional sports leagues and teams, including the New York Jets, among others.
“We are excited to welcome an attorney of Jon’s caliber to our premier Sports Industry Team, which has been a longstanding pillar of strength for Foley and continues to work with leading executives of professional sports leagues, franchises and associations,” said Mary K. Braza, co-chair of the Sports Industry Team at Foley. “His impressive skill set in labor and employment counseling, litigation services and general corporate matters will be a tremendous asset to our expanding team.”
In addition to his experience in sports, Israel has provided corporate clients with litigation and counseling services on a broad range of labor and employment matters, including restrictive covenants and trade secret protection, employment discrimination, wage and hour issues, worker misclassification, union-management relations, contract formation and disputes, workforce reductions, social media, and employee relations.
“Jon is a prominent attorney and well-recognized figure among the New York legal community,” said Peter Wang, managing partner of Foley’s New York office. “As we continue to grow the capabilities of our New York office, Jon’s extensive experience, combined with his deep knowledge of labor and employment law, is an outstanding addition for us on two fronts — for our nationally prominent labor & employment practice group and for an already strong group of sports attorneys in New York, which includes former Major League Baseball President and Chief Operating Officer Bob DuPuy.”
A frequent author and speaker, Israel has published on timely labor and employment topics in the Sports Litigation Alert and New York Law Journal and has presented at a variety of symposia and seminars, including for Aon Consulting and the New Jersey Law Journal. A current member of the Sports Lawyers Association, Israel previously served as law clerk to the Honorable Alfred M. Wolin of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
Foley’s national sports practice covers a full range of legal services and counts the Green Bay Packers, Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, Milwaukee Brewers, Washington Nationals and Milwaukee Bucks among its sports clients. Most recently, the firm represented American Media Productions in the formation of a new regional sports network and related long-term television rights deal for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Last year, Foley also represented Guggenheim Baseball Management in its acquisition of the Dodgers — the single largest transaction ever for a professional sports franchise, following on the heels of Foley’s successful recent representations of Rangers Baseball Express LLC in its acquisition of the Texas Rangers, and the Ricketts Family in its acquisition of the Chicago Cubs.
Just prior to joining Foley, he was a partner at Greenberg Traurig.
