Sports Agent and Sports Lawyer Blog

Here is a story which is important for sports lawyers to monitor in light of the recent Louisville Slugger baseball bat verdict. A Massachusetts youth baseball league has decided to return to using metal bats after an eight-year run of using only wood bats.

The father of the child who was severely injured by a ball hit off a metal bat was shocked and angered by the move:

“[Aluminum] bats hit the ball harder, so those kids are in greater peril,’’ said Richard Hughto, an environmental consultant from Wellesley. “They’re deciding to put some kids in danger so some kids can get more hits . . . [With aluminum bats,] players will hit the ball more often and the good hitters will hit it that much harder’’ toward the pitcher’s mound, which is 46 feet from home plate as opposed to 60.5 feet from home in professional baseball.

The safety of baseball equipment is an issue which Sports Agent Lawyer Blog will continue to monitor, as it heavily impacts the field of sports law.

Many people, including professional athletes, believe that sports law is a glamorous field in which sports lawyers work side-by-side with professional athletes. While this can be true, sports law more often involves lawyers representing athletes in run-of-the-mill practice areas.

The legal proceedings of NASCAR driver Jeremy Mayfield are a prime example. Mayfield, who allegedly had drug problems which led to his suspension, is in the midst of a heavy court battle. Mayfield is trying to obtain data from the former wife of NASCAR’s chairman Brian France. Now NASCAR has interjected itself to try and stop the disclosure.

While this article does not provide extensive detail, it sums up the situation concisely:

The Frances were divorced in April 2008, and Brian France sued his ex-wife in North Carolina Superior Court in September of that year. All documents relating to that case were sealed in December.

"They are attempting to improperly bring private, irrelevant information concerning Mr. France's domestic relations into this litigation as a means of retaliation," NASCAR claimed in its filing.

Following up on our recent blog post about sports libel lawsuits, we have news of a libel lawsuit filed by sprinter Donovan Bailey against a Swedish newspaper.

As a disclaimer, I have to tell you that I have no particular knowledge of Swedish libel law. The article does not go into detail regarding the standard that must be shown to win a libel case, which is critical to understand in a libel lawsuit. In other words, we do not know whether Bailey has to prove “actual malice” by the newspaper in order to bring his claim. We do know that Bailey’s primary goal is to salvage his reputation and image:

"Financial damages is last on our list. First... would preferably be the source of what we think is a mischievous rumour that was given; the second is to repair the image damage that has been done to Mr Bailey. I mean, it was more psychological than anything else done to him," Seegobin said.

"It prevented him from further competing for the rest of the year (because), he was so distraught over this whole situation," he posited.

As sports agents, sports lawyers and pro athletes enjoy Turkey Day, I just wanted to pass on this brief food for thought.

The recent sale of the Pontiac Silverdome for $583,000 has been the subject of extensive ridicule in the media.

"An 80,000-seat domed arena and its 127-acre site sold for less than a one-bedroom apartment in Manhattan," Jon Stewart marveled on "The Daily Show." Not just any apartment — one "with a rodent problem, above a bowling alley and below another bowling alley."

I think it is also a good opportunity for municipalities to wake up and realize that they need to be less short-sighted, and smarter, when they build stadiums using public money. This facility cost the equivalent of $220 million in today’s dollars. Talk about a waste of taxpayer money and resources.

Here are a couple of lawsuits which have been spurred by the upcoming winter Olympics.

First, We have news of a bizarre sports lawsuit in Canada regarding women's ski jumping. From the article:

Forget all of that and consider that a judge ruled that the International Olympic Committee effectively has legal jurisdiction over the Canadian Government. The logic of this decision continues a process where the people of Vancouver have been smashed by the stateless, mobile dictatorship of the IOC.

Here is the bottom line: The court ruled that the International Olympic Committee is in violation of Canadian law by excluding women's ski jumping from the 2010 Winter Olympics, which will take place in Vancouver. However, the court apparently also rules that the IOC's regulations are superior to Canadian law, which has enraged an activist group (and the reporter who wrote this article).

Next, we have news that Vancouver plans to reform its sign ban after a civil rights group sued claiming it infringes on free speech:

The Vancouver-based British Columbia Civil Liberties Association accuses the city of stalling on the changes and says it will press ahead with the suit to prevent enforcement of the law. The ordinance prohibits the posting of signs that aren’t approved by the city, except for those celebrating the 2010 Winter Olympics. The law applies in a 40-block area downtown.

Sports lawyers in Taiwan must be having a field day with the most recent allegations of game-fixing and gambling. According to the article, a team has cut two players, and now plans to sue them for their role in the baseball game-fixing scam.

Apparently, this is not just an instance of a few rogue players going too far with a gambling scheme. The saga gets even murkier, according to the article:

Prosecutors yesterday summoned three additional Bears players — pitcher Hsu Wen-hsiung and outfielders Huang Hsiao-wei and Chiang Chih-tsung — as defendants for playing fake games for money.

Playing fake games for money? I’m curious as to what exactly constitutes a “fake game”? This is an intriguing legal saga that bears watching, not only for the fact that it sounds like something out of a bad movie. It's also important for sports agents in this country to monitor stories like this. The last thing an agent wants to do is send his client overseas to play in Taiwan only to find out that the entire league is embroiled in a massive scandal which makes it a miserable place to play baseball.

We have blogged about it before, and we’ll blog about it again. The NFL concussion problem is not going away.

Leonard Shapiro, a retired sports writer who is in the NFL Hall of Fame, recently put together a chilling story about a retired player who is taking medication to stave off Alzheimer’s. Shapiro’s article does a stellar job of encapsulating the entire NFL debate about concussions when he summarizes the NFL’s response to a study released earlier this fall about concussions. The study revealed that former football players have increased dementia and memory problems. Surely, this caused the NFL to mobilize its vast resources and spring into action, right? Not quite:

Strangely, the NFL's initial response was that the study was scientifically flawed, and that further work needed to be done before a definitive link between on-field hits and dementia can be made.

In many instances, the right thing can be accomplished by utilizing safer equipment. Shapiro’s article references a special helmet, the Xenith X1, which is designed to soften and moderate blows to the head. The helmet is pictured at right.

I hope you understand the reason we continue to blog about this subject. An agent is a fiduciary who is charged with looking out for the best interests of his client. To be sure, football players are grown men who are responsible for their actions and choices, but sports lawyers and sports agents need to get involved to help pressure the league to do the right thing. If nothing else, agents and lawyers should at least make their pro athlete clients aware of the options such as the new and reportedly safer equipment options.

Everyone has an opinion about baseball sports agent Scott Boras. People either love him or hate him.

One thing that Boras does well is drive up the price for his players. This benefits all major league baseball players, and their agents, because he makes more money available. Owners’ complaints about Boras are well-documented: He is a hold-up artist who artificially inflates salaries to the point where baseball is on the verge of a permanent disparity between the large- and small-market teams.

We will cover the disparity in another blog post. What has impressed me about Boras’ recent comments is that he called out the St. Louis Cardinals for crying poverty:

In an interview that ran about 15 minutes, Boras chided the Cardinals for portraying themselves as a "middle-market franchise" and served up a reminder of a potential power-shifting decision the Red Sox made last winter.

Boras always presents unrealistic demands in the initial stages before contract negotiations get serious. He also obtains results, as witnessed most recently by the eight-year, $180 million contract that his client Mark Teixeira signed with the Yankees last offseason.

Boras also disputed MLB's complaints that the current economic crisis will depress the market for free agents:

"We hear this every year," Boras said of MLB's forecasts that spending will be down. "Based upon their bad economic forecasts of last year, I won't invest in their stocks of choice."

As most readers probably know, I am a sports agent for Wolf Sports Management. So today we are deviating from the norm of bringing you sports agent legal news in order to release the following announcement:

Wolf Sports Management, a Fort Lauderdale-based spots agency, has signed Kenny Johnson, a point guard who recently graduated from North Alabama.

Kenny is 5-foot-11, and has been characterized as a quick and speedy guard who is not afraid of contact under the basket. He also has a strong 3-point stroke. On Monday Kenny has a workout with the Vermont Frost Heaves, a team in the Premier Basketball League next week. He has another scheduled tryout with an ABA team after Thanksgiving.

Wolf Sports Management is thrilled to have Kenny Johnson aboard and looks forward to a long-lasting and fruitful business relationship.

For more information about Wolf Sports Management or basketball player Kenny Johnson, contact sports agent Jason Wolf.

Earlier we blogged about concussions in the NFL and the lasting damage they can cause football players. We just wanted to point out an outstanding, if painful, article about former 49ers lineman George Visger, who is afflicted with hydrocepahlus, or "water on the brain." He even has a shunt in his brain as a result of one too many hits to the brain.

Here is a chilling excerpt from the article:

Here’s the score. Visger’s head got knocked around so much playing football, scar tissue formed over the ducts in the brain that supply fluid to the spine. When the fluid builds up enough pressure, it crushes Visger’s brain from the inside out, against the hard, bony skull. If the pressure is not alleviated, his brain will hemorrhage, he’ll go into a coma and die. That’s what the shunt surgically installed in his brain is for, to relieve the pressure. If the shunt should clog—which it has done often in the past, thus the multiple brain surgeries—the pressure builds up inside his skull, causing an intense headache and nausea. If the pressure doesn’t subside, then Visger is supposed to jam the needle in the side of his head and drain off the excess fluid.

I am not suggesting that football players from the old days need to start suing leagues because of the damage previously suffered. At some point, however, the NFL needs to wake up and institute major reform. How anyone can ignore the mounting evidence and argue that football at high levels is not potentially life-threatening is beyond me. This is a topic that Sports Agent and Sports Lawyer Blog won't stop covering until the league makes substantial changes in its policies.

Have you heard about the sports agent who obtained an endorsement for his pro athlete client, but the athlete had to pay money for the privilege of doing the endorsement, instead of the other way around?

A new mouth guard on the market, which retails for up to $800, is being presented as a performance boosting mouthguard. Among the endorsers of this product are All-Pro RB Adrian Peterson and NHL Hall of Famer Brett Hull. They not only endorse the product, they have invested in the company, Bite Tech, which manufactures the special mouthpiece.

The article raises two interesting points. First, should agents advise their clients to try new products if they are alleged to improve performance? (We will cover this in a future blog post; for now, consider whether a sports agent would be wise to recommend that his client try one of the new and improved hockey helmets)

Second, and more importantly, is this a good endorsement if the athlete is not paid anything? The article makes it sound like Hull, Peterson and the others who are involved aren't necessarily endorsing the product as much as investing in a business in which they believe. However, the article also contains this excerpt, which makes me think there is a little bit of a smoke-and-mirrors situation going on here:

But Bite Tech's biggest boost has come from its litany of athlete investors and users, a testament to Kittelsen's prodigious ability to work the room. For instance, Kittelsen first met Hull at Michael Jordan's golf tournament and later cornered him at a restaurant. Hull says it was his idea to invest in Bite Tech, which is precisely what Kittelsen wanted the hockey star to think.

"It has to be their idea," Kittelsen said. "If it's their idea, then they really believe" in the company.

So in other words, the founders of this company have essentially found a way to promote their product that is virtually revolutionary. Not only do they pay nothing to big-time athletes in exchange for an endorsement, they actually have convinced the athlete to pay the company for the privilege of endorsing! Brilliant marketing for the company, but for the agent and athlete, it may not be the smartest move. To be sure, if the product works and the business takes off, the athlete has made a good investment. But at what cost? A superstar such as Adrian Peterson has a brand to protect; he cannot be involved in just any random product. Now he is not only receiving nothing for an endorsement, he is actually paying this company for the privilege of serving as a spokesperson.

Brock Lesnar has been hospitalized with a major illness.

Lesnar is a fascinating topic for this blog because his athletic career has run the gamut from WWE to the NFL to UFC. His endorsement prowess is something we were going to cover in a future blog pose. Now it looks like he is facing some major health problems:

UFC President Dana White has commented on the situation by saying "He's in a hospital up in North Dakota somewhere right now," said White. "He doesn't want to talk about it publicly, but he's in bad shape."

Here's hoping that Lesnar recovers quickly so that he can continue to blaze trails in the UFC world (not to mention defend his title).

I recently read an article about the National Basketball Retired Players Association's program to help retired athletes transition to so-called civilian life. Charles Smith, a nine-year NBA veteran, is heading up the effort to help retired pro athletes.

Smith's efforts are admirable. However, when a retired pro baller gets to the situation where he needs major assistance in getting his financial house in order, it begs the question: Where was the agent to begin with? Why didn't the player's agent offer to set up his client with financial advice, tax shelters, and retirement planning? I am not suggesting that all agents need to delve into areas with which they are unfamiliar. Still, an agent absolutely must be willing and able to offer the resources for his client to take advantage of. Of course the article is correct when it states that only the athlete can come to the realization that he needs to plan for his future:

Sometimes the first challenge is convincing players that they need to plan at all. They live in a world of instant gratification and relative comfort. The average N.B.A. salary is about $5.8 million, and the minimum is $457,000. No one ever anticipates losing it all.

“I understand they’re sitting there and: ‘It ain’t me. It’s not going to happen to me,’ ” Smith said. “You got to think that way. But on this side of the fence, and when you’re getting ready to retire, now we have to shoot straight with them.”

In my view, agents need to be more proactive. Agents can, and should, do everything in their power to make sure that their clients are more than simple money-generating machines. They should understand that the clients are human beings, often from underprivileged backgrounds, who need someone to counsel them on their financial future, or at the very least to steer them toward a professional so that they will not end up like Antoine Walker.

We recently blogged about pro athletes suing reporters. Now comes word that the Major League Baseball Player’s Association is closely monitoring baseball team media comments for signs of a collusive-type effort to artificially limit baseball salaries.

Michael Weiner, MLBPA’s new leader, says the union is worried about the “predictions” that a glut of players who are not tendered contracts by their teams will result in lower salaries for free agents:

"I don't think it's an accident that in recent weeks, management officials, without attribution, have been making predictions about what's going to happen in this year's free-agent market," Weiner said. "There have been predictions about the [money] players will get, what players will be offered [salary] arbitration and what players will be non-tendered [contracts].

As an agent, I think this behavior, if true, is deplorable. However, as a sports agency that counsels its clients on how athletes should utilize the media to deliver the right message, a subject which we have blogged about on several occasions here, this is a situation to monitor. It shows that even when you hear something as seemingly innocuous as sweeping predictions about the market, there is a method to the communication.

The National Football Post has an excellent article on what it calls a recent trend of increased firings among football coaches “for cause.” The article insists that the “for cause” concept is not uniformly defined, and essentially provides too much leeway for the employer to fire a coach for almost any reason. (With that said, I have a difficult time agreeing with the article's premise that Raiders coach Tom Cable is about to be unfairly railroaded by his employer).

Here is an excerpt:

Legally speaking, coaching and front office contracts in the NFL are guaranteed, unlike player contracts. This recognizes the traditional rule of contracts that mutuality is assured and the real world notion that Lou Holtz is famous for saying: “There are only two kinds of coaches, those who have been fired and those who are going to be.” Owners have carved out a narrow list of circumstances that would relieve them from having to pay a coach or executive who is fired for really detrimental conduct. This list constitutes “for cause” termination.

If you are a coach who thinks he has been the victim of an unjust firing, contact the sports lawyers at Koch & Trushin, P.A., for more information.

Here is another example of an athlete leaving a lasting legacy: Minnesota Vikings defensive back Madieu Williams donated $2 million to establish the Madieu Williams Center for Global Health Initiatives at the University of Maryland.

From the article:

But sources at the University of Maryland say Williams has shown an uncommon generosity with both his time and money. Last year, they say, he quietly built a school in Sierra Leone, one of the poorest places on Earth. Over the past 18 months, he has worked with the university on the current initiative, which will fund student volunteers and professionals to make an initial assessment trip to Sierra Leone early next year to determine which health issues are most important

As with Alonzo Mourning helping to create the kidney donation insurance coverage change, it is wonderful to see athletes who consider giving back to be more than a token requirement of their status.

If you’re an MMA fighter, you have to be pleased at the recent news that Georges St. Pierre has signed with Under Armour. As MMA goes more mainstream – and people finally recognize MMA for what it is, which is a legitimate sport that has nothing in common with WWE – more endorsements are sure to follow.

A lot of people are probably asking themselves: Now that St. Pierre is in the fold, who will be next? The question that I would like answered is: Which mainstream company will dip their toes into the MMA world next? It’s not like MMA is a stranger to big corporations; many endorse the league overall. But to date few major sports endorsing companies endorse individual athletes, and that is sure to change now that Under Armour has signed up St-Pierre. This is good news for MMA fighters and their sports agents.

For more information on sports agents and endorsements, contact sports attorney Jason B. Wolf.

Here comes another story of professional athletes who were bilked out of their hard-earned money. Several players on the Columbus Blue Jackets recently spoke to a reporter about the instances in which they were swindled.

As always, the article is just another cautionary tale which has at its root the fundamental problem of who an athlete can, and cannot, trust. This is why we here at Sports Agent and Sports Lawyer Blog continually emphasize the theme that athletes need to employ risk managers, someone who can assess and analyze each and every investment opportunity and explain the pros and cons to the athlete. This person should be an attorney, but not necessarily be the athlete's personal counsel, and should not be the athlete's financial adviser.

It's easy for the athlete to be seduced when approached by an inventor or entrepreneur who promises to give the player a share in the Next Big Thing. There is no doubt that occasionally, some people do have solid ideas and the athlete could actually benefit from making an investment. More often than not, the opposite is probably true. We have written several times about athletes and their financial problems. Even having a professional financial adviser is not always sufficient:

Most athletes have a financial adviser, but the people serving in that capacity vary widely.

Several Blue Jackets said they allow relatives or family friends to manage their money. Other players are represented by large sports agencies that handle all their financial matters, including bill and mortgage payment.

It's a subject that will never go away until athletes get smarter about their overall risk-taking strategy. People essentially need to allocate only a fraction of their overall disposable income to high-risk ventures. Then they need to figure out the best way to maximize that percentage. Blue Jackets player Rick Nash has the best approach. His lawyer, agent, financial adviser and accountant are all unrelated to one another. This ensures that there are greater checks and balances.

Typically when a baseball agent is released from prison, it is not necessarily a time to celebrate. The case of Juan Ignacio Hernandez Nodar, a sports agent imprisoned in Cuba for the past 13 ½ years, is different. I am not sure that we can lump Nodar into the category of disgraced sports agents.

The fact that he was imprisoned in after a trial in Cuba which does raises some doubts as to his actual guilt. He allegedly helped Cuban baseball players defect to the United States. Another noted sports agent, Joe Cubas, said that Nodar was made an example by the Cuban government.

``We had half the Cuban Olympic team ready to defect at a tournament in Mexico'' in 1996, Cronin told El Nuevo Herald in a telephone chat as he boarded a plane for Miami so that he could meet Hernández Nodar upon his arrival. ``But the government made a lesson out of Juan Ignacio and El Duque, and everything went cool.''

I personally do not know whether Nodar would have been convicted in an American court, although it seems doubtful.

News that the pending baseball card lawsuit between Topps and Upper Deck was settled recently came as no surprise to us here at Sports Agent Lawyer Blog.

According to published reports, the baseball copyright infringement lawsuit settled in mediation in New York. Topps sued Upper Deck alleging that the latter’s 2009 cards too closely mimicked the former’s 1970s card designs. (For the avid card collectors out there, this link provides a detailed review of the baseball card lawsuit). Topps was seeking monetary damages and specific performance, including the destruction of Upper Deck’s allegedly infringing cards.

We were not surprised to see that the lawsuit settled because Upper Deck is apparently now out of the licensed baseball card game because Topps now has a multi-year deal with MLB to be the exclusive provider of baseball cards.

The recent news that baseball legend Curt Flood put his World Series ring and Gold Glove award up for auction is noteworthy because it comes on the eve of the latest round of free agency (as we discussed in the blog a few days ago).

For those who don't remember, Flood is credited with essentially being the father of baseball free agency. Before he filed his famous baseball lawsuit, which went to the United States Supreme Court, baseball players were extremely limited in where they could play; they essentially had no choice. Flood fought the owners, and the result was the most powerful union in sports, and the best free agency scheme in any of the major pro sports.

Here is a quote which sums up Flood's influence. Few could disagree with Flood's influence on the game of baseball and his role in shaping the game into what we know today:

"Needless to say, the significance of Curt Flood in baseball history is pretty well versed," said David Hunt the president of Hunt Auctions. "Whether people agree with his stance or not, he changed the way baseball operated. His effect on history shouldn't be understated."

Many athletes talk about leaving a charitable or philanthropic legacy. Few athletes have their names attached to groundbreaking legislation.

In Florida recently, the the Alonzo Mourning Access to Care Act went into effect. The law expands insurance coverage for kidney transplants. Alonzo Mourning already had a monumental list of accomplishments on and off the basketball court – from NBA Championship to kidney transplant survivor. Now he has a lasting legacy that will alter the way Florida insurance carriers treat patients with renal disease.

A sports agent or firm with a sports law practice cannot guarantee you will get a law named after you(!), but can certainly help you set up a philanthropic giving program.

The recent tragedy of former Titans quarterback Steve McNair, who was allegedly murdered by his girlfriend last summer should illustrate why all professional athletes need a will.

According to published reports, McNair was an athlete who died without a will. He left an estate of approximately $19 million, and the family members have begun fighting about who is entitled to what monies.

The tragedy of this entire situation speaks for itself. That he died without a will, leaving his family member to engage in a costly legal battle to distribute his estate, just makes this tragedy even more senseless and sad. Any athlete, coach or sports executive should consult an attorney or investment adviser to draft a comprehensive estate plan.

For more information, contact the sports lawyers at Koch & Trushin, P.A.

With the World Series finally wrapped up, it also means we’re on the figurative eve of the Hot Stove season. Baseball players have 15 days following the conclusion of the World Series to file for free agency.

This leads to endless speculation about which player will exercise their option clauses, which players will be non-tendered by their clubs, and who needs whom in order to fill lineup holes for next season. As usual, MLB Trade Rumors does a stellar job of evaluating every team’s needs and wants based on their payroll.

For anyone wondering about who are the free agents, Cot’s Baseball Contracts provides a run down of free agent position players here, and pitchers here.

Rest assured that while the agents for the big name free agents this year such as John Lackey and Chone Figgins are counting on big paydays from the few teams able to add payroll this offseason, agents for the other players are frantically studying the data to see where their clients would fit. Most players have probably already made their decision about filing for free agency, but a few are still waiting for final word from their agents before deciding what road to take.

After free agency gets going, that means the winter meetings are right around the corner, and then a quiet period over the holidays, followed by the usual flurry of arbitration hearings (and last-minute compromises) before teams report for spring training.

If your name is on the birth certificate, do you have parental rights? In Florida, the law differentiates between paternity and parental rights—signing a birth certificate may establish paternity and the obligation to pay child support, but unmarried fathers must establish their parental rights by obtaining an adjudication of paternity from the courts.

If a father is not married to the child’s mother at the time of the child’s birth or conception, he must petition the court for an order granting parental rights. Establishing parental rights gives an unmarried father the legal right to: (1) seek a court order for visitation rights, (2) request a change or modification in custody, (3) request child support if he has custody of the child, and (4) be involved with important decisions that concern his child, including choices regarding their schooling, medical treatment and religious upbringing.

Continue reading " Athletes and Paternity or Parental Rights " »

Athletes need endorsements. Olympic athletes especially need sponsorships. We have blogged several times previously about various methods used by Olympians to raise money for their sports careers, from creative endorsements to new techniques to find sponsorships. Now comes what is believed to be a first in Olympic history.

The Colbert Report is sponsoring the U.S. Speedskating team. What is unique about this opportunity is that Colbert is not paying any money to the team. Instead, he is asking his fans to donate money. Time will tell how much money this deal brings in for U.S. Speedskating. It seems like an unusual sponsorship arrangement. It is probably an indication of how difficult times are for athletes if they have to sign endorsements with businesses in exchange for nothing more than a promise to ask fans for donations.

Can you remember the first time you read or watched someone publicly criticize you? Professional athletes are criticized all the time; it's part of the territory. As your career progresses, you learn to tune out the media as background noise which has no viable impact on your performance.

However, every now and again, especially if you hear something particularly vicious in a gossip web site or blog, you think about suing for libel. To say the least, suing for libel is an uphill battle - especially if you are a professional athlete, and therefore considered a public figure who is open to criticism and commentary. Under Florida law, in addition to proving the falsity of the statement, you also have to prove that the person who published the falsehood did so with "actual malice" - meaning that he wanted to harm you.

Next, you have to show that you suffered actual damages from the falsehood. Did a meet director read or hear the statement, and then decide not to invite you to the meet? Did a general manager see the statement on TV, and then decide not to make you an offer?

If you think you have proof of the "actual malice" and "actual damages" necessary to maintain a libel lawsuit, consult a qualified attorney before taking any action. Many states, including Florida, have specific conditions precedent necessary to follow before filing suit, such as giving the newspaper an opportunity to retract the statement.

The recent defamation lawsuit filed by former NFL quarterback Sean Salisbury provides some guidance on when to sue for defamation. Salisbury alleges that the blog which wrote about his alleged exploits intentionally tried to harm his reputation. This lawsuit also demonstrates the distinction between so-called mainstream media and blogs. While the demarcation line between what is, and what is not, a legitimate news site has been blurred, it may be easier to prove defamation against a blog than against a newspaper. It will be interesting to see what happens as Salisbury's lawsuit progresses. (The Wall Street Journal offers its take on defamation lawsuits by sports personalities here).

Another option is to simply stop talking to the press, but that strategy rarely benefits the athlete; instead it only makes the athlete (or coach) look like a bully.

Does the baseball bat verdict alter the way pro and amateur baseball is played?

When a jury in Helena, Montana ruled in favor of the estate of a baseball player killed when he was hit by a line drive from a metal bat, the entire baseball community took notice. Immediately, one had to wonder about the future of metal bats in amateur baseball. Almost all amateur teams use metal bats for the simple reason that they do not break, which means that they are more cost effective than wood bats.

It has always been common knowledge that balls hit off metal bats travel significantly faster than balls hit of wood bats. The Helena case did not necessarily signify the final out for metal bats; the actual verdict showed that the bat maker was negligent for its failure to properly warn that its bats were dangerous. So what are the implications of this ruling? If bat makers imprint a warning on each bat, would that be significant to evade any future adverse verdicts?

Only time will tell. It is important to note that change may be a virtual certainty, at least at some point down the road, because this is not a new problem. According to this entry in the Minneapolis Star Tribune newspaper, people inside Louisville Slugger were aware of the problem going back more than a decade, and probably longer.

As an attorney who handles lawsuits exactly like this one, in which there is a terrible tragedy which was a rare occurrence (in the substantial majority of the other people engaging in this activity do not suffer in this way), I think this lawsuit had merit, and this is not an instance of a runaway jury or an absurd verdict which highlights the problems with our judicial system. The fact that the jury did not find the bat defective probably meant that the impact of this verdict will be somewhat limited, in that it will not force the entire amateur baseball world to switch back to wood bats.

For more information on sports or baseball lawsuits, contact sports law firm Koch & Trushin, P.A.

Are female golfers going to earn more money in sports endorsements?

Michael Whan, who was named the new LPGA commissioner earlier this week, has an extensive background on the marketing and business side. He worked at North America TaylorMade adidas Golf from '95-'00 and has also worked as a brand marketer for BriteSmile and Procter & Gamble.

While Whan's selection was reportedly a surprise to golf insiders who thought the new commissioner would be a more established name, this is probably good news for LPGA golfers. As they try and resolve the problems their sports has been facing, it will be helpful that the new leader has a marketing background. Reports estimate that the LPGA has lost about 13 events since the beginning of 2008, and the league itself has been forced to lay off employees.

Not least of their problems are a dearth of sponsorships, endorsements and marketing opportunities for their athletes. With the new commissioner coming from a marketing background, rather than from an established league or sport, it seems that the golfers on the LPGA can look forward to a stronger and more robust business model, which should translate into more money in their pocket.

Will amateur football players sue their leagues? The recent Congressional hearings about the issue of concussions in the NFL were interesting. To me, I think there is an inevitable wave of litigation which is sure to follow as this issue continues to be mainstreamed.

The bottom line is that it’s becoming a virtual certainty in the medical community that football can result in brain injuries, even to athletes who play in college and never experience the intensity of an NFL collision. Logically this seems to mean that the injuries are also present in high school and youth league players, right?

So when will we see the first high-profile civil lawsuit against a high school, amateur governing association or youth league? There are several legal causes of action that could be brought by or on behalf of a player who suffers injury, ranging from simple negligence to more complex “failure to warn” torts.

Continue reading " Football Lawsuits Against Leagues, Teams and Schools " »