What is “Sports Law” and Who Is a “Sports Lawyer”?

During December, I will be periodically blogging about a variety of sports law topics. Although sports-related legal issues frequently arise (almost daily) and interest the general public as well as lawyers, most people fail to appreciate the breadth and complexity of “sports law.” I recently wrote the following column on this topic for the December 2008 issue of The Young Lawyer, a newsletter published by the American Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division:

It is a common misperception that “sports law” is a narrow field populated primarily by lawyers representing professional athletes, sports leagues, or clubs who have specialized expertise in sports-specific laws. To the contrary, “sports lawyers” represent a wide variety of clients who need legal advice and representation that usually requires knowledge of several general areas of law.

Virtually every field of law regulates or is relevant to one or more aspects of youth, high school, college, Olympic and international, professional, or recreational sports.

The sports industry is vast in scope, has millions of athletes (but less than 10,000 U.S. major league and top level individual sport professional athletes) and spectators, and generates billions of dollars annually. In addition to amateur and professional players, coaches, referees and officials, leagues, national, regional, state, and local governing bodies, athletics administrators, educational institutions, and sports facility owners and operators are part of the sports industry. Broadly defined, this industry also encompasses sports broadcasters, playing equipment manufacturers, sports medicine care providers, businesses that sponsor athletic events or athletes, concessionaires who serve food and drink to fans at games, and others that provide sports-related goods and services.

It is debatable whether “sports law” (like cyber law or health care law) is a discrete area of law, or merely the application of many areas of general law to a unique industry. In the United States there is no direct government regulation of sports at any level of competition. There are few sport-specific federal or state laws, with the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act, 36 U.S.C. §220501, et seq., and athlete agent statutes (adopted by more than 30 states) being notable exceptions. However, because of the unique features of sports competition such as the need for uniform rules and competitive balance, general laws often are applied differently to sports than to other social or business activities. For example, physical contact among participating athletes is an inherent part of the game, so tort law permits some on-field contact that would otherwise infringe a person’s legal rights. Similarly, because off-field cooperation in the form of rules and agreements among groups that produce or sponsor sports events is necessary to ensure competitive balance and an uncertain outcome that generates fan interest, antitrust law is applied differently than to the same conduct in other industries.

Although sports law courses are a relatively recent addition to the curriculum at most law schools, lawyers have practiced “sports law” for many years (many of whom, including me, never took a sports law course). However, several general courses I took as a law student, particularly antitrust, tort, and intellectual property law, provided a solid foundation of general knowledge enabling me to represent clients in several sports-related matters and to teach sports law. As a practicing lawyer who specialized in intellectual property law, I registered trademarks and copyrights on behalf of sports industry clients, provided advice regarding a trademark licensor’s potential legal liability for defective playing equipment manufactured by its licensee, and defended a restaurant in a copyright infringement suit for showing a “blacked out” NFL game to its patrons. As a law professor, I have represented Harris County, Texas, in litigation concerning the Houston Oilers NFL club’s relocation to Nashville, filed an amicus brief on behalf of two sports medicine physician organizations in an American With Disabilities Act suit by a college basketball player against Northwestern University, served as an expert witness in Title IX gender equity litigation, advised a golf club manufacturer about potential legal claims arising out of the decertification of its golf clubs, and provided legal advice in a major league baseball player’s medical malpractice suit against his former team.

Sports law is a very eclectic and interesting field, and lawyers representing sports industry clients must have expertise in several areas of law to represent their clients effectively. Counsel for professional leagues and clubs need general knowledge of contract, labor, private association, antitrust, tort, tax, and intellectual property law. Those representing professional athletes must be familiar with labor and employment, contract, federal and state tax, and worker’s compensation laws as well as the multiple layers of athlete agent regulation. It is essential for lawyers representing professional sports industry clients or those doing business with them to have strong contract negotiation and drafting skills. An understanding of the arbitration process is important because most employment-related disputes between professional athletes and the league or their respective clubs are resolved by mandatory arbitration. Representation of individuals, educational institutions, and governing bodies that are part of the youth, high school, college, or Olympic sports industries also requires broad knowledge of several areas of law including contract, private association, tort, and constitutional law (if the requisite “state action” exists) as well as arbitration (for Olympic sports).

Although sports lawyers have varied backgrounds, most of them did not obtain full-time employment with sports organizations or have a stable of sports industry clients upon graduation from law school. Rather, they gained legal knowledge, skills, and experience representing clients in other industries that has proven to be readily transferable and useful in serving the needs of sports industry clients or handling sports-related matters. Very few attorneys spend a majority of their time practicing sports law, but many lawyers perform professional services for one or more clients who are part of, or have dealings with, the sports industry.

This Post Has 7 Comments

  1. V Salvia

    Hello, I came across your article in searching for information regarding my rights as a city women’s league player. I play on an 18+ team in the city of Chino Hills, Ca. I am co-manager of the team and last season we asked a player to not return to the team due to her “aggressive”, dangerous style of play, On the FIFA rules it is listed as “carelessly recklessly and with excessive force”. This player left our team and added herself to another team on the league. Since last season everytime we play against her, someone is seriously injured. Broken toes, fractured collar bone, ligament tears, we are aggressively bullied and treated like bowling pins and are constantly being hurt and knocked down. The league has done nothing and it boggles my mind that she has not been red-carded or asked to leave. We have had many issues with incompetent officials on this league. Do we continue to be injured by this player and sit around and do nothing? Most of us are mother’s and just want to have a nice friendly competitive game without worrying about being seriously injured. Although it is possible due to the fact that soccer is a contact sport, but as you mentioned in your article “physical contact among participating athletes is an inherent part of the game, so tort law permits some on-field contact that would otherwise infringe a person’s legal rights.” What is your advice?

  2. Sherry Monteleone

    I have a 17 y.o. daughter who has been on the school swim team since 1st grade. Last year she had mononucleosis and also tendonitis in her shoulder and had to miss a lot of the season. The swim team never made cuts before this year. The new season started 1 month ago and my daughter attended every practice morning and after school. We were told to get medical consents and sign all the regular time consuming forms. This would be the first year in the schools brand new pool which we eagerly anticipated. Well, she came home yesterday crying saying she did not make the team. No reason or “sorry” made. I am a working mom with 2 other children and also in grad school so I am not there timimg her or watching her practice. I will attend the meets but I feel she was unjustly cut without explanation. I am dumbfounded as to why since she is in 11th grade all of a sudden they start to make cuts. All her friends are on the team after all she grew up with them. It is heart wrenching for a parent to know she is eliminated from a good althletic sport which kept her busy and healthy. I asked the coach and athletic manager for an explanation but none so far. Should I be asking to see the rules? Don’t you think they should “grandfather” kids that have been swimming for years into the program and start their new rule in the middle school? After all my daughter can’t just join another sport at this point in the high school year. Do I have any ground to say this is discrimination since she was ill last year and they feel she will cause defeat? I am willing to hear comments.
    thanks,
    Sherry M

  3. Mary Enyeart

    I feel your frustration. My grandson has played 3 sports-basketball,football,and baseball ever since he was old enough to play. In 2009 a car accident just about took his life. His first year back as a junior in basketball was a nightmare. The new young coach first put him on varsity then to JV. Although he attained every level the head coach had required of him [according to jv coach ], he never got put back on varsity. This year as a senior my grandson was cut after 2 days. The reason was-quote- he wasn’t at senior level and I and other people know he was as good or better than some he kept. This has now lead to my grandson acting out in ways he never thought of before because sports was his whole being. I feel this coach has affected my grandson so that he may never recover. I hope you get satifaction about your daughters situation. We are upset and feel helpless.

  4. Toni Toomey

    I am writing on behalf of my relative who was promised a scholarship to a west coast school last February. He has the signed contract, the welcome letters and has been on campus and been in contact with the school and coach numerous times. He was supposed to start this month (January) because he was being “grey shirted”. He and his mother have been trying to contact the school to get the details for a couple of months now. No one will call them back. He has also been offered other scholarships, but was staying loyal to the school because they had a signed contract. They finally called him back last week to say that he was not accepted to their school! How can they do that when they signed a contract and sent him several emails congratulating him and welcoming him to their school?

  5. Ahnaf Mazid

    I would like to know how you got in to the sports industry as a lawyer and whether you could guide me as to how I could take a route into that same industry as a lawyer too.

    Kind regards,

    Ahnaf

  6. Jacob Jenks

    I REALLY want to thank you for this blog. I am a freshman in highschool and really trying to figure out what I want to study in college. I love sports and leaning toward criminal justice studies in Highschool. The only thing that kept me wondering was how to bring the two together. I want to thank you for this blog as it helped me start to figure things out. Any advice on how or what I should do to prepare myself for this college major?

  7. Shanna Halvorsen

    Do you also represent sports persons clubs as pro-bono? In India, we do this.

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