UNC & NCAA Seek Dismissal of Academic Fraud Claims

On Monday, March 30, both the University of North Carolina and the NCAA filed motions to dismiss the lawsuit they’re facing brought by two former student-athletes for failing to provide them a meaningful education.

The lawsuit, filed in January, stems from the highly publicized academic fraud scandal where it was shown that the University of North Carolina had been offering “paper classes” to boost grades. These classes required very little work, lacked academic integrity, and provided failing student athletes the grade boost necessary to …

April 2, 2015 Litigation / Music

8-Year Old Lawsuit Over Jay Z’s “Big Pimpin’” Going to Trial

The lawsuit over Jay Z’s sampling of an Egyptian tune in his hit “Big Pimpin’” may come to an end in October when a jury decides whether the rapper had the right to use the Egyptian composition.

Claiming that he is an heir of the composer Baligh Hamdy, Osama Ahmed Fahmy in 2007 sued Jay Z as well as Timbaland, Paramount Pictures, Warner Music, UMG and MTV. He alleged that the rapper sampled the tune titled “Khosara, Khosara” from the 1957 film Fata …

April 1, 2015 Antitrust

StubHub Claims Warriors & Ticketmaster Conspired to Form a Monopoly

Over the weekend, online ticket resale marketer StubHub, filed an antitrust lawsuit in Federal Court against the NBA’s Golden State Warriors and Ticketmaster, alleging conspiracy to create a monopoly.

The Golden State Warriors have been very successful on the court as of late. This year, the team clinched a playoff spot for the third straight season and secured the first seed in the playoffs in the western conference. The team has also sold out 118 straight home games in addition to maxing out its season …

April 1, 2015 General

Sports Litigation Case Law Update March 2015 Part 2 of 2

As mentioned in part 1 of this months sports litigation case law update here we visit a hockey locker room in upstate New York, and go back to Texas for a youth baseball field.

High School Hockey Player Assumed the Risk of Being Stepped On By a Skate in the Locker Room

Litz v. Clinton Central Sch. Dist., 2015 WL 1270085 (4^th Dept., March 20, 2015)

Plaintiff high school hockey player was walking barefoot in the locker room when his teammate, who still …

March 31, 2015 Copyright / Intellectual Property / Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Trademark / Litigation / Music / Trademark / TV

Rise and Fall of an Empire (Distribution, Inc.)

In the pilot episode of Fox’s smash-hit series Empire, Cookie Lyon, explaining why, after her release from jail, she’s returning to her husband Lucious Lyon’s fictional record label, Empire Entertainment, says simply: “I’m here to get what’s mine.” This is, of course, in reference to the formerly-jailed matriarch having taken the rap for Lucious to the tune of 17 years behind bars for drug-running while he built his music “empire.” Coincidentally, it also may sum up the thinking over the last couple of months …

March 31, 2015 Soccer

Sports Litigation Case Law Update March 2015 Part 1 of 2

In this month’s sports litigation case law update, we travel to a soccer stadium in Texas, a softball field in Illinois, a hockey locker room in upstate New York, and then back to Texas to a youth baseball field. We start, however, with the best sports-related quote in a judicial opinion this past month, which comes from the Court of Appeals of North Carolina which stated “we conclude that the purported conflict described in [defendant’s counsel’s] motion to disqualify looks less like a conflict of …

March 29, 2015 Concussions / NHL

NHL Fails to Secure Quick Exit From Concussion Litigation

On Wednesday, March 25, Federal Judge Susan Nelson denied the NHL’s motion to dismiss the class action concussion injury lawsuit brought against it by former NHL players.

Several different complaints against the NHL were consolidated last October in which six former players, seeking to represent all players living and deceased, argue that the NHL failed to inform them of the health risks caused by concussions and head-related trauma though the league had knowledge, research, and resources of such information. The allegations mostly follow the lead …

March 28, 2015 NFL

Pittsburgh Steelers Antonio Brown’s Agent Sued for Double-Dealing

Exclusive Supplements Inc. (“ES”), a sports and nutrition supplement company, filed a lawsuit against an NFL agent for inducing Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown to breach the non-compete provision of the endorsement agreement Brown signed with the company in November 2014.

The complaint was filed on March 24, just one day after Glukos, a sports nutrition brand, announced that Brown signed on to be on “Team Glukos.” The court document alleges that Brown’s agent Rosenhaus Sports Representation (“RSR”) induced Brown to enter into the Glukos …

March 27, 2015 TV

Former Television Judge Joe Brown Loses Appeal Over Contempt Finding

On Monday, March 23, former television personality Judge Joe Brown lost his appeal of the juvenile court ruling that found him in contempt of court and sentenced him to five days in jail last March.

Joe Brown was visiting Shelby County Juvenile Court last March when he was approached by a woman who wanted his advice. The former judge decided to represent the woman in the courtroom and became heated when the magistrate judge denied his request for dismissal and rescheduled the hearing. Brown became …

March 26, 2015 Copyright / Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Trademark / Litigation

Court to Determine Who Owns “Happy Birthday to You”

A California federal judge is to decide whether Warner/Chappell owns the 120-year-old “Happy Birthday to You” as Warner/Chappell and Good Morning to You Productions (“GMTY”) came to an agreement to do so on March 23. The copyright suit was brought against Warner/Chappell in 2013 by GMTY, alleging Warner/Chappell “extracted millions of dollars in unlawful licensing fees” for the song despite the controversy over the origins and ownership of the song.

Arguing that the song has been in the public domain for 65 years, GMTY President …

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