Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves is expected to make Mississippi the seventh state to enact name, image, and likeness (NIL) legislation. When signed, the Mississippi Intercollegiate Athletics Compensation Rights Act will allow Mississippi student-athletes to earn endorsement compensation from the use of their name, image, and likeness and authorize their hiring and use of professional representation, … Continue Reading
The U.S. Supreme Court has announced that it would allow the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to became an additional presenter during the landmark case, NCAA v. Alston, which is set for oral argument on March 31, 2021. The Alston case arises out of consolidated appeals from the NCAA and several high-level conferences in two … Continue Reading
Amateur Athletes Protection and Compensation Act. The Amateur Athletes Protection and Compensation Act of 2021 (Protection Act), the sixth federal proposal governing student-athlete name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights, has been introduced U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS). Senator Moran’s legislation combines aspects of prior partisan legislation proposed by both Republican and Democratic legislators. The Protection … Continue Reading
An additional federal legislative proposal regarding college athlete name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights has been introduced on Capitol Hill. The Bill, known as the College Athlete Economic Freedom Act (“Freedom Act”), is authored by Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) a leading advocate and author on college athlete rights and U.S. Representative Lori Trahan (D-Mass.), a … Continue Reading
President Joe Biden has named Peter Sung Ohr to serve as Acting General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board). Ohr has served as the Regional Director of the NLRB Chicago office for nearly a decade. While the Regional Director, Ohr is best remembered in the world of collegiate sports for his … Continue Reading
Following receipt of a letter from the United State Department of Justice-Antitrust Division expressing concern about the NCAA’s anticipated vote, NCAA President Mark Emmert has “strongly recommended” to his membership that the NCAA vote currently scheduled for Monday to potentially ratify name, image and likeness (NIL) rights for collegiate student-athletes be delayed. The much anticipated … Continue Reading
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s signature on House Bill 5217 and House Bill 5218 will allow Michigan student-athletes to earn financial compensation from the use of their name, image, and likeness and authorize the hiring and use of attorneys and agents without affecting student-athlete scholarship eligibility. Michigan now joins California, Florida, New Jersey Colorado, and Nebraska … Continue Reading
Shortly after the Supreme Court granted certiorari to consider the Ninth Circuit’s ruling that the NCAA violated federal anti-trust laws by illegally limiting the value of athletic scholarships, new federal legislation has been introduced that could drastically change the world of college athletics and drastically limit the NCAA’s current authoritative stronghold on student-athletes. Senators Corey … Continue Reading
While the legal focus on college athletics has been on the impending expansion of name, image, and likeness rights for NCAA student athletes, prompted in part by State and Federal legislative proposals, the Supreme Court has shifted that focus to the courts after agreeing to intercede and rule on what will prove to be a … Continue Reading
As additional states move closer to joining the five states (California, Florida, New Jersey, Colorado and Nebraska) which have already enacted legislation granting name, image and likeness (NIL) rights to student-athletes and the NCAA moves closer to its anticipated January vote NIL rights, the number of proposed federal NIL’s bills continues to grow as well. … Continue Reading
California State Senators Nancy Skinner and Steven Bradford, the initial drafters of the historic California state legislation which granted student-athletes the legal right to seek remuneration for their name, image and likeness rights, plan to introduce new state legislation to bolster Senate Bill 206 (SB206). Although the specific language of the new bill has yet … Continue Reading
The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), the national organization of men’s basketball coaches, and its Committee on Racial Reconciliation has forwarded a letter to all of its member coaches encouraging basketball programs to play both “The Star Spangled Banner” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing” prior to games this season. Craig Robinson, NABC Executive … Continue Reading
As the NCAA Men’s Basketball 2020-2021 regular season schedule is about to begin in the midst of escalating coronavirus pandemic spikes and increasing hospitalizations around the country, the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee announced today the relocation of 13 predetermined preliminary round sites for the 2021 Division I Men’s Basketball Championship to one geographic … Continue Reading
Once again, the Ivy League has sent a loud and clear COVID-19 message to the collegiate sports community. After initially delaying the start of the winter sports schedule until January 2021, the Ivy League Counsel of Presidents has voted unanimously to cancel all intercollegiate sports until at least March, becoming the first Division I conference … Continue Reading
The NCAA has taken a further step toward the finalization of specific provisions which would allow student-athletes the opportunity to pursue endorsement opportunities for the use of their name, image and likeness. The NCAA Division I Council has approved an updated draft of proposed student-athlete name, image, and likeness rights (NIL) legislation. This revised proposal, … Continue Reading
While the collegiate sports world awaits the NCAA’s final position on the issue of student-athlete name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights, another college athletic governing body has stepped forward and made the initial legislative enactment authorizing student-athletes to profit from the use of their name, image, and likeness. The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) … Continue Reading
Legislation that would protect the rights of student-athletes to receive financial benefits from the commercial use of their name, image, and likeness (NIL), while prohibiting athletic associations, like the NCAA and colleges and universities, from preventing student-athletes from participating in intercollegiate athletics as a result of entering into endorsement contracts has been introduced in the … Continue Reading
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy’s signature on the New Jersey Fair Play Act (S-971/A-2106) will allow New Jersey student-athletes to earn financial compensation from the use of their name, image, and likeness and authorize their hiring and use of attorneys and agents without affecting their scholarship eligibility. New Jersey joins the states of California, Colorado, … Continue Reading
For the second time in a little more than a month, Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal and New Jersey Senator Cory Booker have announced plans to introduce additional federal legislation impacting collegiate student-athletes “in the coming months.” This follows the Senators’ previous introduction of the “College Athlete Pandemic Safety Act,” which would eliminate the ability of colleges … Continue Reading
One of the worst developments of the COVID-19 pandemic has been its impact to college sports and the unfortunate sacrifice of athletics programs across the country affecting all levels of NCAA and NAIA competition. Since March, hundreds of collegiate varsity programs have been discontinued, with more cuts likely coming. Eliminating a varsity sport is never … Continue Reading
As the world responds to COVID-19/Coronavirus, the world of professional and amateur sports is responding as well. The virus had already has begun impacting the sports world and its impact with likely increase. The spread of the virus throughout the United States has led to growing concerns about sporting games and events. As a result, … Continue Reading
The number of states supporting the growing effort to secure legal rights for student-athletes to market their name, image, and likeness for economic benefit without affecting either their scholarship benefits or amateur status continues to grow. Legislators from Minnesota and Georgia have announced that they intend to introduce legislation at their state’s next legislative session … Continue Reading
New York State Senator Kevin S. Parker recently introduced his bill, the New York Collegiate Athletic Participation Compensation Act, to provide New York college student-athletes an opportunity to market their name, image, and likeness for economic benefit without affecting either their scholarship benefits or amateur status. Now, he has amended the bill a second time. … Continue Reading
In a recently published letter, the agents of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) wrote, “[T]he NCAA Agent Certification process and the rules, regulations, and guidelines surrounding it are needlessly invasive and onerous and are completely counterproductive to meeting the NCAA’s stated purpose in attempting to certify and regulate NBA agents: to protect men’s … Continue Reading
