Inside the NBA with Suzanne Spellacy, General Counsel of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Minnesota Lynx and T-Wolves Gaming
The Briefing by the IP Law Blog: NBA Star Luka Doncic Goes Hard in the Paint and Seeks to Cancel Mom’s Trademark (Part 2)
The Pitch newsletter is a monthly update of legal issues and news affecting or related to the music, film and television, fine arts, media, professional athletics, eSports, and gaming industries. The Pitch features a diverse...more
Floyd Mayweather finds himself deep into a lawsuit, as fraud and theft claims have been put against his name. The American boxer and rapper Tyga are now part of a suit by Leonard Sulaymanov, who has alleged the non-payment of...more
In Rogers Media Inc et al v John Doe 1 et al, 2024 FC 1082, the Federal Court (Canada) (the Court) issued the first site-blocking judgment allowing the applicants to simultaneously protect live content in multiple sports...more
Women’s soccer. Pickleball. Indoor golf. Even bull riding is a target for private equity money flowing into the sports business. Deals now span far beyond investing in the four major US professional leagues. That’s...more
Streaming service Fubo has told a NY federal court that ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery are teaming up with others to knock down its “sports-first streaming business,” but what Fubo calls anticompetitive behavior, the...more
Almost half of the teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) were recently sued for copyright infringement. In the complaint filed against the Atlanta Hawks, one of the plaintiffs—publisher Kobalt Music Publishing...more
Picture a deposition of a plaintiff’s treating physician. Early in the deposition, defense counsel asks the usual questions about the physician’s communications with the plaintiff’s counsel. But the plaintiff’s counsel,...more
The breach of contract trial against a woman claiming to be Jerry Jones’ daughter is scheduled to start next Monday, and the Cowboys owner is expected to testify on the witness stand....more
As we all await rulings on the lawsuits challenging the FTC’s Noncompete Rule (one of which may be decided later today), we provide an update on the Knicks/Raptors trade secret case that we previously discussed on EBG’s...more
Health Care Fraud and Money Laundering of $18 Million Leads to Prison Sentence for New York Pharmacy Owners - Two pharmacy owners from New York have been sentenced for using their pharmacies to submit fraudulent claims to...more
Game equipment company Sport Squad Inc. deceptively marketed some of its pickleball paddles as approved by the sport’s national governing body even though the approval had been rescinded, a consumer class action alleges....more
Big Baby’s Big Foul: Former NBA Star Glen 'Big Baby' Davis Sentenced to 40 Months for Healthcare Fraud Scheme - On May 9, former Boston Celtics forward Glen “Big Baby” Davis was sentenced to 40 months in prison following...more
Tattoos and copyright law have once again crossed paths, as an Ohio jury recently concluded that the creators of the NBA 2K series had an implied license to use an artist’s designs that he tattooed on LeBron James. Even...more
One of the best examples I have recently seen on the power of data driven compliance is playing out in real time in the NBA. It is the Jontay Porter betting scandal. This event had driven home why transparency, coupled with...more
The NCAA and the Power 5 conferences have told a CA federal judge that the “highly varied and diverse ways” schools compensated athletes after the 2021 Alston Supreme Court decision make it implausible to certify the class...more
With 2024 underway, our team highlights 10 of the most pressing legal issues facing the media and entertainment industry this year. In 2024, media and entertainment businesses will focus on whether the longstanding tenet...more
Cooperation Spares Former NBA Shooting Guard From Prison - Former National Basketball Association (NBA) shooting guard, Antoine Wright, was sentenced to time served after he pled guilty to conspiracy and aggravated...more
The first person charged for violating a 2020 law that forbids conspiracies to taint international sports events through performance-enhancing drugs received a three-month prison sentence. Federal prosecutors used the...more
Florida State University is pushing for the dismissal of the Atlantic Coast Conference’s NC lawsuit, saying it was prematurely filed to preempt the university’s own suit against the conference, in an attempt to win a “race to...more
Vince McMahon, co-founder of World Wrestling Entertainment Inc., has resigned, a WWE representative confirmed Friday, a day after a former employee claimed McMahon forced her to have sex, trafficked her to other executives...more
DC Federal Judge Dramatically Amplifies False Claims Act Damages Award - On January 16, Judge Rudolph Contreras of the US District Court for the District of Columbia issued an opinion agreeing in part with the federal...more
A Florida State assistant coach has been suspended for the first three games of the 2024 season for violating recruiting rules by connecting a potential transfer with a representative from an NIL collective during an official...more
Welcome to our 2023 Trade Secret and Restrictive Covenant Year in Review. 2023 was a busy year in this space, but not as busy as many expected. Although multiple states introduced restrictive covenant legislation, the most...more
A third attorney team representing World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. stockholders has signaled a tag-in for a widening Delaware Court of Chancery rumble with founder Vincent McMahon and top company officials and directors...more