The biggest names in sports law will convene next month in San Francisco, when the prestigious Sports Lawyers Association hosts its 34th Annual Conference.
The conference is designed for attorneys, agents, representatives of professional athletes, professional sports teams and leagues, players associations, stadium and arena authorities, and companies tangentially involved with amateur sports; students and professors of sports law; educators; and all others generally interested in the field.
The educational portion of the conference will be ushered in by incoming SLA President Gordon I. Kirke of Toronto. Conference Chair Debbie Spander, Vice President Business & Legal Affairs for MTV Entertainment, will then host the first day’s sessions.
One of the conference most insightful traditions will follow when Gary R. Roberts, Dean and Professor of Law at the Indiana University School of Law, provides his Overview of Recent Legal Developments in Sports.
Other speakers at the conference, in order of appearance, will include:
• Stephanie Vardavas, Assistant General Counsel of Nike, Inc., Portland, OR
• Marivonne Basten, Senior Vice President, Legal & Business Affairs, IMG, New York, NY
• Richard L. Brand, Partner, Arent Fox LLP, Washington, DC
• Jeffrey B. Gewirtz, Senior Vice President & General Counsel, NETS Basketball / Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, East Rutherford, NJ
• Gabe Feldman, Associate Professor and Director of Tulane Sports Law Programs, Tulane Law School, New Orleans, LA
• Bob Wallace, Executive Vice President, St. Louis Rams, St. Louis, MO
• Jay K. Reisinger, Partner, Dreier LLP, Pittsburgh, PA
• James D. Williams, Law Offices of James D. Williams, Durham, NC
• Anthony J. Dreyer, Partner, Skadden, Arps, New York, NY
• Rick Karcher, Florida Coastal School of Law, Jacksonville, FL
• Lester Munson, ESPN Investigative Team, Chicago, IL
• Jane Kirtley, Professor of Media Ethics and Law, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
• L. Jon Wertheim, Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated, New York, NY
• Michael Huyghue, Commissioner, United Footbal League, Jacksonville, FL
• Allison Rich, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/SWA, California State
• University, Fullerton, CA
• John B. Shukie, Assistant Director of Agent, Gambling and Amateurism Activities, NCAA, Indianapolis, IN
• Ellen Whittemore, President, Las Vegas Sports Consultants, Las Vegas, NV
• Jay Moyer, Special Counsel, NFL, New York, NY
• Jessica Berman, Associate Counsel, NHL, New York, NY
• Warren LeGarie, WLG Management, San Francisco, CA
• Steven M. Ladik, Partner, Berry, Appleman & Leiden LLP, Dallas, TX
• Ed Burns, Vice President, Baseball Operations & Administration, Major League Baseball, New York, NY
• Efren Hernandez, Greenberg Traurig, McLean, VA
• Robert A. Hacker, Vice President, Business and Legal Affairs, Fox Broadcast Co. and Fox Sports, Los Angeles, CA
• T. Derrick Heggans, General Manager, AOL Sports, Dulles, VA
• Scott R. Rosner, Associate Director, Wharton Sports Business Initiative, Philadelphia, PA
• Donna Lopiano B.S., M.A., Ph.D, President, Sports Management Resources,
• Former CEO, Women’s Sports Foundation
• Mark Levin, Director of Salary Cap and Agent Administration NFLPA, Washington, DC
• Richard A. Berthelsen, General Counsel, NFLPA, Washington, DC
• Athelia N. Doggette, Assistant Director of Salary Cap and Agent Administration, NFLPA, Washington, DC
• Leah Tuffanelli, Legal and Business Affairs, MATCH Services AG, San Francisco, CA
• Christopher McCleary, Associate General Counsel, Global Marketing & Client Management, Visa Inc., San Francisco, CA
• Lisa Lazarus, Senior Director of Business Affairs, NFL International, London, England
• Peter Marco, Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs, Fox Sports International, Los Angeles, CA
• Maidie E. Oliveau, Arbitrator, Court of Arbitration for Sport, Los Angeles, CA
• Adam G. Mersereau, Head of Business Affairs / Senior Marketing Counsel, IOC Television & Marketing Services, SA, Atlanta GA
• Kelly C. Crabb, Partner, Morrison & Foerster LLP, Los Angeles, CA
• Ash Narayan, RGT Capital, Irvine, CA
• Marc Isenberg, Ballamor Capital, Santa Monica, CA
• David Highmark, Northern Trust, Phoenix, AZ
• Elsa Cole, General Counsel, NCAA, Indianapolis, IN
• Deana Garner, Associate Director of Agent, Gambling and Amateurism Activities, NCAA, Indianapolis, IN
• Arthur McAfee, Staff Counsel, NFLPA, Washington, DC
• Brooke Beyer, Assistant General Counsel, NASCAR, Charlotte, NC
• Stokely Caldwell, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, Charlotte, NC
• Jim Dudukovich, Marketing Counsel, Coca-Cola North America, Atlanta, GA
• Joel Corry, Premier Sports Management, Las Vegas, NV
• Craig E. Fenech, Law Offices of Craig E. Fenech, Fallbrook, CA
• Gabe Feldman, Associate Professor and Director of Tulane Sports Law Programs, Tulane Law School, New Orleans, LA
• Mark Conrad, Associate Professor, Legal and Ethical Studies, Schools of Business,
• Fordham University, New York, NY
• Joshua P. Golka, Law Offices of Joshua P. Golka, Sacramento, CA
• Rick Karcher, Florida Coastal School of Law, Jacksonville, FL
• Hal Biagas, Deputy Counsel, NBPA, New York, NY
• Vicky Neumeyer, Vice President/General Counsel, New Orleans Saints, New Orleans, LA
• Vered N. Yakovee, Law Offices of Vered N. Yakovee, Los Angeles, CA
• William Gould, Charles A. Beardsley Prof. of Law, Emeritus, Stanford Law School, Palo Alto, CA
• Ronald S. Katz, Partner, Manatt, Phelps and Phillips, LLC, Palo Alto, CA
• Richard A. Berthelsen, General Counsel, NFLPA
• Donald M. Fehr, Executive Director and General Counsel, MLBPA
• Paul Kelly, Executive Director, NHLPA
• Eugene Upshaw, Executive Director, NFLPA
• William “Billy” Hunter, Executive Director, NBPA
• William Y. Webb, Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary of The Phillies
• Jeffrey Pash, Executive Vice President and League Counsel, NFL
• Thomas J. Ostertag, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, MLB
• William Daly, Deputy Commissioner, NHL
• Joel Litvin, President, League and Basketball Operations, NBA
• T. Derrick Heggans, General Manager, AOL Sports, Dulles, VA
• Adam Zissman, Assistant General Counsel, Washington Redskins, Ashburn, VA
• Derek Jackson, Counsel, Florida Marlins, Miami, FL
• Chitta Mallik, Associate General Counsel, Octagon, McLean, VA
• Eve Wright, Vice President and Associate General Counsel, Miami Heat, Miami, FL
For more information, visit www.sportslaw.org
