ASU 4th Annual Conference on Sports and Entertainment Law

I am looking forward to returning to speak at The Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University for its 4th Annual Conference on Sports and Entertainment Law this Saturday, November 9th, 2013 from 9am – 4pm, followed by a reception for all attendees and speakers.  The Conference will take place at Arizona State University Memorial Union, Arizona Ballroom 221 (2nd Floor), 1290 S. Normal Ave., Tempe, AZ, 85287.  CLE credit is available for attorneys, including Ethics credit.  The Keynote Presentation will be given by Bud Selig, the Commissioner for Major League Baseball. 

Panel topics include:

• Agency –Sports and Entertainment Joint Panel
• Athlete Personal Website and Social Media Issues
• Music Rights and Copyright
• Licensing, Sponsorship, and Endorsement Agreements
  –with a mock negotiation
• Major League Baseball and Olympic Steroid and Drug Testing

Panelists include:

• Caleb Jay (Associate General Counsel, Arizona Diamondbacks)
• Gary Marchant (Faculty Director & Faculty Fellow, Center for Law, Science & Innovation)
• Steve Adelman, Venue Safety Expert, Adelman Law Group, PLLC
• Scott Peters, Safe Football LLC, former NFL and ASU Athlete

·       Gregg Goldman, 29th Drive

• Rodney Smith (Distinguished Professor of Law & Director, Center for Sports Law & Policy, Thomas Jefferson School of Law)
• Marc Edelman (Associate Professor of Law at the Zicklin School of Business, Baruch College, City University of New York & Professional Sports and the Law, Fordham University School of Law)
• James M. Marovich (The Marovich Law Firm, PLC)
• Mark Conad (Associate Professor & Acting Area Chair for Law & Ethics, Director of the Sports Business Specialization, Fordham University)
• Travis Leach (Partner, Ballard Spahr LLP)
• Timothy Liam Epstein (Partner/Chair, Sports Law Group at SmithAmundsen; and Adjunct Prof. of Law at Loyola University Chicago School of Law)
• Jason Belzer (Founder, Global Athlete Management Enterprises, Inc. & Writer for Forbes)
• Sam Renaut (Certified NFL Player Agent)
• Stephen Webb (Executive Director of Athletic Compliance, Arizona State University Sun Devil Athletics)
• Jaia Thomas (Sports & Entertainment Attorney, The Law Office of Jaia Thomas)
• Connie Mableson (Intellectual Property, Business, & Entertainment, Mableson Law Group, PLLC)
• Elissa Hecker (Entertainment & Business Attorney, The Law Office of Elissa D. Hecker)
• Debbie Spander (Sports & Emerging Media Attorney, Spander Digital Sports & Entertainment)
• Stephen Nebgen (Entertainment & Intellectual Property Attorney, The Law Offices of Stephen Wade Nebgen, PLLC)
• Jay Raftery (Raftery Law Firm, J.L. Raftery, PC)
• Don Gibson (Founder, Kavi Sports & Entertainment)

Its always a great conference, and looking forward to having fellow Sports Law Blog contributors joining me this year.

Register at this link. 

Confronting Locker Room Bullying with Physical Violence

An interesting development in Incognito-gate yesterday, with stories that Miami Dolphins GM Jeff Ireland told Jonathan Martin's agent that Martin should punch his tormentor in the face.

One downside of punching someone in the head, of course, is that one has committed a tort: battery.  Can a person use force to defend themselves from bullying?  In my article Defense Against Outrage, I explore this very question.  I ask whether, if the bully's conduct rises to the level of extreme or outrageous conduct, a person can use physical force in "self-defense" against the emotional damage bullying can do.

Some have argued that Richie Incognito's bullying, pervasive and offensive, would rise to the level of IIED.  Would that have created a privilege to use physical violence in self-defense?