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Tuesday, May 31, 2005
Soccer Match-Fixing Scandal in Vietnam
Referee Luong Trung Viet of the Vietnam Football Federation ("VFF") has been suspended pending an investigation into his alleged involvement in match-fixing. Trung Viet is apparently the first of a larger group of VFF referees who will be suspended for match-fixing. Such corruption is not uncommon in the VFF, as it has recently been "plagued with match fixing and several players have been jailed or suspended for their involvement in the scandals."I guess this is a good reminder to us that no matter how bad the officiating sometimes seems in the...
Monday, May 30, 2005
New Orleans Hornets Alleged to Have Violated Fair Labor Standards Act
This past Friday, eight former Hornets' employees filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in New Orleans, alleging that the team required them to work more than 40 hours per week but did not pay overtime. The lawsuit also alleges that those employees who failed to work more than 40 hours per week were penalized and threatened with discharge. As a matter of background, employees paid on an hourly basis are always protected by the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), while salaried and contracted employees are often not....
Friday, May 27, 2005
NBA Draft Age Limit (Floor): The Discussion Continues
Christian Ewell of the Baltimore Sun had a great piece last week on the NBA's efforts to institute an age floor. Since I was finishing my thesis, I didn't come across come it (or much else, for that matter). Christian had interviewed Gary Roberts and me for the story:Michael McCann, an incoming professor at Mississippi College School of Law and member of the legal team that helped former Ohio State football player Maurice Clarett challenge the NFL on a similar issue, said he expected a lawsuit directed at the NBA if it institutes an age limit....
Fight Club Japan? Japanese Youths Arrested for Violating 1889 Anti-Dueling Law
12 children between the ages of 15 and 17 were recently arrested in Japan for dueling, which has been outlawed since 1889. The children were members of rival fight groups from Yokohama and Tokyo, and they had established intricate rules for their bouts, including that the dueling partners be chosen with consent from both groups; that hair-pulling be disallowed; and that fighting to the death be permitted unless one fighter gives up first. At the time of their arrest, the group from Yokohama was ahead by three wins to two. One of the children had...
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Woman Sues Rockies over Loss of Leg
As predicted (12/31/03), a woman who lost part of her right leg in an escalator accident at Coors Field is suing the team, the escalator manufacturer and the baseball stadium municipal district for $700,000. Denver's chief inspector found that mechanical failure, combined with a missing safety switch, was the cause of the July 2003 accident. But Kone, the manufacturer, blamed overcrowding and a misconnected wire for the accident. Blame will be passed around between the team, stadium and the manufacturer, but I would expect a fairly quick settlement...
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Earnhardt's Racing Team Sues To Collect Insurance
A trial began this week in the lawsuit between Richard Childress Racing and an insurance company that provided a policy on the life of Dale Earnhardt: More than four years after Dale Earnhardt's fatal crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500, his racing team is still trying to collect on a life insurance policy it applied for just weeks before his death. Richard Childress Racing says it took out the $3.7 million policy on Earnhardt's behalf. If collected, the money would go to the NASCAR legend's widow, Teresa.The insurance company argues that...
Jockey and Horse Owners Sue over Newspaper Story
The owners of Funny Cide, along with the jockey that rode the horse to victory in the 2003 Kentucky Derby, are suing the Miami Herald for defamation. The suit stems from a story the Herald ran soon after the victory, suggesting that the jockey held an illegal object in his hand during the race. It was later determined that he was holding nothing other than a whip. The newspaper issued a correction six months later, but the jockey claims this was "too little, too late." He claims that the Herald engaged in "reckless disregard" for the truth and...
Attorneys in Sports: Paul Tellarico, Race Car Driver
Interesting story on Louisiana attorney Paul Tellarico, who, with three races to go, is tied for first in the Red Bracket competition of the Grand Bayou Road Race Series (Louisiana). A graduate of the Louisiana State University Law Center, the 46-year old Tellarico is also a partner at Neblett, Beard & Aresenault in Alexandria, Louisiana. Tellarico became involved in competitive race car driving in 1996, when he was named rookie of the year for the Sports Car Club of America Red River Region. (Tompkins, "Tales from the Road: Local Attorney...
More on Native American Nicknames
Marquette University has received a great deal of publicity for its recent decision to have an online vote to adopt a new nickname. You can vote here if you are a Marquette affiliate. The possibilities include the Blue and Gold, Golden Avalanche, Hilltoppers, Voyagers and Wolves. What was wrong with the old nickname?From 1994-2004, the team was known as the Golden Eagles. In 2004, the school changed this to the Marquette Gold, but student and alumni reaction was so negative that the university made the decision to institute the voting process....
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Leaving School Early: John Mayer v. Luol Deng
Meredith Goldstein of the Boston Globe had a revealing article a few weeks ago on the graduation rate at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. She found that only 48 percent of Berklee students earn their degrees. Why so low? Because many of the most talented students "turn pro" before graduating, often by age 18 or 19. (Goldstein, "At Berklee, Losing Students is Early Price of Success," Boston Globe, 5/4/05)The low graduation rate at the Berklee College of Music is not unusual. Most performing arts institutions likewise have difficulty retaining...
Texas Hold 'Em Poker Tournaments in Wyoming: Gambling or Just Good Times?
Wyoming Attorney General Pat Crank is currently reviewing the rise of Texas Hold 'Em poker tournaments in his state. In these tournaments, which are held at bars and restaurants, players pay a small entrance fee (usually $25) and are given a certain number of chips, which contain no monetary value. Eight players compete at one table, and continue to play until one player has won all of the chips. Although winners receive no monetary compensation, some receive free trips to larger tournaments, which are typically held in Reno and Las Vegas. (Burke,...
Friday, May 20, 2005
Boston Sportscaster Bob Lobel Sues Cartoonist Darby Conley for Libel
Famed CBS4-TV Sportscaster Bob Lobel has sued syndicated cartoonist Darby Conley for his May 13 "Get Fuzzy" cartoon. In the cartoon, which appeared in over 450 newspapers, a dog, cat, and their owner are watching TV and the dog says "Is this sportscaster . . . drunk?" The owner replies, "Lobel? Who knows?" The cat and owner then get into argument and the dog says, "Guys, guys! How can you fight while there's a drunk guy on TV?"Having grown up in Massachusetts, I can safely say that Bob Lobel is my favorite local sportscaster. He's funny, irreverent,...
On-line Gambling and Horse Racing
The 130th Running of the Preakness Stakes will occur tomorrow at the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland, and if you are betting, then you already know that Afleet Alex is the 5-2 favorite, while Kentucky Derby winner Giacomo is only the fourth choice at 6-1. And you probably know that this is the first time a Derby winner did not get favorite odds since 2001 (when Monarchos was the slight second choice) .According to a piece by Norm Frauenheim of the Arizona Republic, about 800 websites are taking bets on the Preakness. Since on-line betting...
Thursday, May 19, 2005
Top 25 Selling NFL Jerseys
Darren Rovell of ESPN details the NFL's Top 25 selling jerseys. The top five player jerseys are those for Randy Moss, Michael Vick, Tom Brady, Donovan McNabb, and Ben Roesthlisberger. Interestingly, although rookie wide-receiver Braylon Edwards of the Cleveland Browns has not yet caught an NFL pass, he is ranked #13, while Super Bowl MVP wide-receiver Deion Branch of the New England Patriots didn't even make the list. In terms of teams represented, while the New England Patriots have won three of the last four Super Bowls, they have only one representative...
Video Game Console Wars & Exclusive Licensing Deals
Peter Lewis of Fortune Magazine has an excellent piece on the upcoming console war between Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and the Nintendo Revolution. He compares the three systems in understandable, non-technical language, and projects their relative chances for success. We have discussed the potential deleterious effects of exclusive licensing deals on video game innovation, although based on early images of John Madden Football, it doesn't look like we have much to worry abo...
David Ortiz and John Rocker: Double Standard?
Rick Duncan at Only Baseball Matters raises a very intriguing question: Why is it that when John Rocker makes a series of inappropriate remarks, the MSN savages him, yet when David Ortiz talks about "raping" another team's "bitches," the media laughs it off? Rick quotes from page 89 of Tony Massarotti's and John Harper's A Tale of Two Cities: The 2004 Yankees-Red Sox Rivalry, where the authors talk about Ortiz's "undying sense of humor":Once, when Grady Little was manager, Ortiz stuck his head into the manager's office during the manager's daily...
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Kwame Brown: Wasted Talent or Stardom to Come?
Stephen J. Brooks of the Black Sports Network has an excellent piece on Kwame Brown, the free agent-to-be who most media members and fans have lambasted since he was suspended by the Wizards in the playoffs. Brooks takes a more balanced approach, noting a parallel between Brown and Jermaine O'Neal, who was similarly lambasted after his few NBA seasons didn't materalize in stardom. It will be interesting to see how much Brown earns as a free agent, and how well he performs at his next stop. Unrealistic expectations, injuries, and being a "Michael...
Knowing When to Fold Them: The NBA Draft and Declaring Too Late
Nice piece by Aran Smith of NBADraft.net on amateur basketball players who found that "staying in school" can sometimes prove to be a big mistake. Among the players he profiles are Darius Rice and Felipe Lopez, who had they declared for the NBA Draft out of high school, would have likely been first round picks. Lopez might have even been a high lottery pick. But they went to college instead, Rice to the University of Miami, and Lopez to St. John's University. While Lopez suffered injuries that would derail his play, Rice struggled with confidence,...
Toney v. L'Oreal: The Marginalization of Baltimore Orioles v. MLBPA, 805 F.2d 663 (7th Cir. 1986)
In the 1986 case of Baltimore Orioles v. Major League Baseball Players Association, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that state law right of publicity claims were generally preempted by the federal Copyright Act. Specifically, the court addressed the question of whether MLB clubs owned exclusive rights to the televised images of players during games. The players argued, in sum and substance, that a state law right of publicity afforded them a commercial interest in their televised images. As a matter of background,...
Amusement Park Manager Found Guilty for Death of Visitor
A manager of a Tennessee amusement park was found guilty of reckless homicide and could be sentenced to up to four years in prison for negligently maintaining a ride that resulted in the death of a patron. The jury spared the man the harsher second-degree murder conviction, which carries a penalty of up to 25 years in jail. The manager was portrayed as recklessly playing "Russian roulette" with his customers' lives, short-circuiting safety systems because he cared more about selling tickets than protecting his patrons. Prosecutors said the park...
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Swimmer Wins Lawsuit Against Vitamin Maker for Positive Drug Test
A jury in California has awarded nearly $600,000 to a competitive swimmer who claims that a contaminated multivitamin led to a positive drug test and a suspension from the sport. Kicker Vencill tested positive for the prohibited substance 19-norandrosterone in an out-of-competition drug test in January 2003. He immediately suspected the vitamins might be to blame and a private lab confirmed the suspicion. But the US Anti-Doping Agency, which cannot always distinguish how a drug entered the body, has a zero-tolerance policy: athletes are responsible...
California Assembly: Angels Engaged in False Advertising
The California legislature has decided that the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim" amounts to false advertising and has decided to do something about it. Yesterday, the state assembly passed the "Truth in Sports Advertising Act" (AB 1041), a bill aimed directly at the team's new monniker. I discussed the bill in this earlier post (2/25). The bill would require any professional sports team that plays a "plurality" of sporting events in a year in a place different from its official name would have to disclose that fact on all tickets, advertisements...
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Who is on Your Pick-Up Court?
I apologize for the absence from blogging -- the posts should be coming more frequently now. As a start, check out this non-law story from Slate: fitting NBA players into the stereotypes of guys who play pick-up basketball. The one I think is missing -- the guy who wears goggles. Too bad Horace Grant is not still playi...
Saturday, May 7, 2005
Hawaii Passes 18-Year Old Age Floor for Ultimate Fighting
Motivated by an increasing popularity of ultimate fighting, which involves a mixture of boxing and martial arts and which is presently unregulated in Hawaii, the Hawaiian Legislature has passed Senate Bill 768. This bill requires that contestants must be medically fit adults who have not been disqualified in another jurisdiction and that an experienced referee and licensed physician are present at the ring. It also levies a fine up to $10,000 for infractions. Governor Linda Lingle has until July 12 to sign it. (Gonser, "Bill Sets Rules for Hybrid...
Friday, May 6, 2005
Florida Legislature Rejects Sales Tax Plan to Finance New Marlins Stadium
Citing lack of fairness in allocating sales tax subsidies to millionaires, Florida Senate President Tom Lee announced yesterday that his state's legislature has rejected the Florida Marlins' bid for a $60 million sales-tax subsidy for a new ballpark. This is the third recent failure by the Marlins to secure $60 million in sales tax subsidies. It is no doubt a major disappointment to the Marlins, and also to Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, who, upon learning of this news, complained, "If our state representatives can't see the big picture, then we'll have...
Ontario Hockey League Lowers Age Floor to 15
The Ontario Hockey League, which is one of the three major junior leagues that comprise the Canadian Hockey League, has decided to lower the age floor for its entry draft from 16 to 15. Specifically, the rule allows "exceptional" 15-year olds to participate, with "exceptional" being a euphemism for "draftable." The impetus behind this decision appears more economical than philosophical: it is speculated that highly-regarded 14-year old John Tavares of Toronto was headed for the rival United States Hockey League (which does not have an age floor)...
Thursday, May 5, 2005
Speculation: Did Bud Selig Suspend Barry Bonds for the 2005 Season?
A poster on Sons of Sam Horn (whose membership includes Red Sox ace Curt Schilling, team owner John Henry, and numerous media types) raises an interesting, if perhaps quixotic idea: Did Selig Suspend Bonds for the 2005 season?This goes back to the old conspiracy theory with Michael Jordan's gambling escapades that many believe led to David Stern suspending MJ for one entire season to deflect what may have been a nightmare scandal for the NBA. There are many similarities between Jordan and Bonds being involved in activities that give their respective...
Texas Legislature -- Solving Society's Problems One Bill at a Time
The Texas Legislature has decided to tackle one of the most pressing issues in society today. It is an issue that deals with the very fabric of our youth and could be the most important part of the education system. Cheerleading. The Texas House of Representatives passed a bill on Tuesday restricting "overtly sexually suggestive" cheerleading and demanding "more ladylike performances." The bill, which still needs to pass the state senate and be signed by the governor, would authorize the state education commissioner request that school districts...
Wednesday, May 4, 2005
Big East and ACC Settle Lawsuit
The Connecticut Law Blog discusses the Big East and Atlantic Coast Conference settling a series of lawsuits between the two leagues resulting from a series of defections from the Big East to the ACC. Disclosure of this settlement only occurred after the Hartford Courant filed a Freedom of Information request to obtain the relevant documents from the Office of Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenth...
Lost in Translation? MLB Steroid Testing Policy and Spanish-Speaking Players
Boston Red Sox DH/first baseman David Ortiz, a native of the Dominican Republic, wonders if language barriers help explain why four of the five players who tested positive for steroids are Latino. Ortiz appears annoyed with the Players' Association for failing to conduct information sessions in both English and Spanish. He also wonders why Major League Baseball failed to provide Latino players with drafts of the new steroids testing policy in Spanish. MLB Executive VP Rob Manfred acknowledges that while all of the documents applying to the Collective...
Tuesday, May 3, 2005
Some Good Reads
I will be busier than usual over the next week and a half and so posting will be sparse. I apologize in advance, but commend to you the following good reads.- The Washington Post discusses how overseas recruiting has become more difficult in the wake of 9/11.- The fine gentlemen at The Sports Economist have interesting posts on ticket scalping and barriers to entry and franchising.- Skip Bayless at ESPN has a good article on Manu Ginobli, including some great thoughts on the "stigma" of white basketball players in the US.- And finally, Terrell...
