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Baseball

Can Consumers of Louisville Slugger Baseball Bats Hit a Homerun in Legal Battle Against Wilson Sporting Goods?

In January, a class-action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Chicago against Wilson Sporting Goods by a consumer who purchased a Louisville Slugger baseball bat for his high-school age son. The Louisville Slugger baseball bat has a design flaw that causes its handle to move independently of the barrel when swung, which is alleged to decrease the power and detract from the performance of the bat.

Wilson Sporting Goods also advertised the bats as meeting standards set by the United States Specialty …

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High School / Litigation

Ruling on Field Stands for High School Coach Suspended for Praying on 50-yard Line

On August 23, 2017, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction by Bremerton High School football coach Joseph Kennedy, who accused the school of violating his First Amendment rights by prohibiting him from praying on the 50-yard line immediately after football games. The prayers had started with just Kennedy on the field, but some players joined in over the years, and the prayers evolved into short motivational speeches. Although the praying took place after the games, students and parents were still …

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Litigation / NCAA

SCA Promotions “Bounces Back”: Yahoo Owes Millions for Backing Out of NCAA Bracket Prize

Back in 2014, Yahoo promised college basketball fans a “Billon-Dollar Bracket,” which allowed anyone who could predict every winner in the 2014 NCAA men’s basketball tournament $1 billion dollars. To create this contest, Yahoo entered into an $11 million dollar contract with prize promoter SCA Promotions. Once the contract was finalized, SCA went looking to find insurance coverage for the grand prize. However, at the same time, Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway and Quicken Loans came up with their own $1 billion prize, and …

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Litigation / NFL

Ex-NFL Player’s Counsel Dodges Attorney’s Fees Assessment

A federal judge on August 21, 2017 denied a motion requesting that the NFL Player Disability and Neurocognitive Benefit Plan and its board assess $20,000 in attorney’s fees against the counsel of former NFL player, Brian Jackson.

Brian Jackson, who played with the New York Jets, the New York Giants, then the St. Louis Rams, had originally sought disability benefits in December 2014 from football-related injuries. The claims committee unanimously denied his claim because Jackson had to prove he was experiencing at least 25 percent …

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Baseball / Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Trademark / Litigation

Rawlings Defensive Over Easton’s Plan to Release Bats With Similar Logo

On August 15, 2017, Rawlings Sporting Goods Co. filed a lawsuit against Easton Diamond Sports LLC arguing that Easton ripped off Rawlings popular “5150” brand of bats with a new “S150” line that Easton planned to release pursuant to a recent equipment rule change. Starting January 1, 2018, Little League Baseball has banned the use of all 2 ¼ inch barrel baseball bats constructed with composite material in the barrel, unless approved. Little League bats will now be governed by the BBCOR bat standard…

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Baseball

Baseball Owner Believes Denial of Expansion Opportunity in Foul Territory

In July 2015, the Washington Wild Things (Frontier League) filed suit in U.S. District Court over MKE Sports and Entertainment’s lease at Kokomo Municipal Stadium for the Kokomo Jackrabbits (Prospect League) claiming damages over the loss of the market after months of negotiations. Wild Things owner, Stuart A. Williams, has claimed damages because the Prospect League, through allegedly unlawful actions by MKE Sports and Entertainment head Mike Zimmerman, landed Kokomo, thus denying a Frontier League franchise that would have generated $50,000 in expansion fees. They …

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Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Trademark / NBA

Video Game Tattoos Copyright Infringement? NBA 2K Attempts to Close-Out Case

In February 2016, Solid Oak Sketches sued 2K Games and Take-Two Interactive Software claiming that it owned the copyrights to tattoos on several NBA stars, including Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, and Eric Beldsoe. The tattoo designers sought actual damages, statutory damages and attorneys’ fees, but in August 2016, a New York federal judge ruled out the latter two. U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain stated “in order to obtain statutory damages and attorneys’ fees, a plaintiff must have registered its copyright prior to the alleged …

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Uncategorized

First Professional Transgender Player Not Quite Ready to Hang Up the Skates

Last October, Harrison Browne, formerly known as Hailey Browne, became the first openly transgender athlete to compete in a professional North American team sport. For the past two seasons, Browne has played in the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) for the Buffalo Beauts. Two seasons ago, in the NWHL’s inaugural season, Browne scored 12 points and tied for the team lead in penalty minutes. Last season, Browne was part of a surprising Beauts championship season, where they beat the Boston Pride 3-2.

After the championship …

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Concussions / NFL

Former NFL Players Hit Back as Over Eighty-Eight Percent Have Entered Settlement

The NFL and its former players agreed that August 7, 2017 was the final day for players to register for the NFL concussion settlement program in order to receive benefits for head trauma experienced during their careers that have or could result in brain injuries. Current NFL players and those who retired on or after July 7, 2014 are not a part of the registration process.

Adam Selter, a lawyer who has been retained by approximately two hundred former NFL players, stated “[t]he settlement is …

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Concussions / NHL

Boston University Wins Fight for Fees

On Monday, July 31, 2017, U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson awarded Boston University $96,300 in attorneys’ fees and costs to be paid by the National Hockey League. The dispute stemmed from the NHL’s demand for research and data from about 400 former athletes’ brains studied by BU’s Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) Center. The University refused the request on the grounds that only six of the brains studied were those of former NHL players, and Judge Nelson honored their request for fees and costs stemming …

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