Entertainment & Sports Law

New York Sues Yankees’ Jeter Over Residency Claim

A high-profile New York tax case against a professional baseball player is giving star billing to the legal issue of establishing state residency. Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees considers himself a resident of Florida, which has no state income tax. But the state and city of New York…

Nov 17, 2007 1:44 AM CST

Barry Bonds Case Puts MLB on Trial

As baseball fans throughout the country found out that home-run king Barry Bonds had been federally indicted yesterday in a steroids-related perjury case, many wondered why the Giants slugger has now been seemingly singled out for prosecution. But they didn’t have to look far for some possible answers, according to…

Nov 17, 2007 12:38 AM CST

Lawyers Rev Up for Grand Prix Case

Corrected: No engines screamed, no crowd roared, and no champagne was in sight. Instead, lawyers had the track to themselves in a sixth-floor conference room in the London office of Sidley Austin yesterday, as they argued a case that could change the result of last month’s Brazilian Grand Prix. Moved…

Nov 16, 2007 6:17 PM CST

Home Run King Barry Bonds is Indicted

UPDATED: A federal grand jury in San Francisco has indicted baseball superstar Barry Bonds on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. This comes at the end of a four-year federal investigation into whether Bonds lied under oath to a grand jury probing steroid use by athletes, the Associated Press…

Nov 15, 2007 11:01 PM CST

Court Declines Civil Rights Case Against NCAA

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal in a lawsuit that claims the NCAA colluded with a state university to defame a basketball coach. The coach’s lawsuit seeks to hold the private organization liable for civil rights violations because of its involvement with a state agency, SCOTUSblog…

Nov 13, 2007 5:08 PM CST

Hollywood Outsourcing Higher-End Legal Work to India

Even with the millions that a successful movie can make, Hollywood producers are watching their legal costs. So, instead of having high-priced U.S. law firms handle all of their entertainment matters, some reportedly are starting to send some relatively high-end legal work to attorneys in India. While outsourcing “back office”…

Nov 12, 2007 9:15 PM CST

Writers Strike Keeps Entertainment Firms Busy

Updated: The writers strike has entertainment law firms busy advising clients about strike rules, rights and obligations. The Writers Guild is striking in an attempt to obtain residuals for work transmitted over the Internet and new media, the Recorder reports. “There is a tremendous amount of work now,” said Alan…

Nov 8, 2007 7:28 PM CST

Fantasy Baseball Stats Protected by First Amendment

A fantasy baseball league does not need a license to run online games, a federal appeals court has ruled. The St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the use of the athletes’ names and statistics is protected by the First Amendment, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. “The information…

Oct 17, 2007 4:26 PM CDT

Ban on Hannah Montana Virtual Line-Cutters

Commercial resellers can’t use computer software to cut in line ahead of ordinary fans competing for tickets to Hannah Montana concerts, a federal judge has ruled. An upcoming tour by the star who plays Montana in the Disney Channel television show has ignited a frenzy of fan interest unprecedented since…

Oct 16, 2007 3:32 PM CDT

Sprinter Marion Jones to Admit Steroid Use

Olympic gold medalist Marion Jones has admitted using steroids and is set to plead guilty today in New York to charges that she lied to federal agents about her drug use. In a letter to family and friends, Jones acknowledged she used drugs as she prepared for the 2000 Summer…

Oct 5, 2007 11:00 AM CDT

EU v US in $100 Billion Landmark WTO Case

The United States reportedly could be required to pay the European Union and other World Trade Organization partners as much as $100 billion in damages, due to federal legislation last year that increased restrictions on Internet gambling. But an unnamed U.S. trade official pooh-poohed this contention, calling the damages being…

Sep 27, 2007 10:24 PM CDT

Tennis Fraud Squad Debated After Claimed Wimbledon Bribes

Tennis officials throughout the world reportedly are reeling—and thinking about pooling their organizations’ resources to develop a new fraud squad—after claims by several professional players that they have been offered bribes to lose games at Wimbledon. Yesterday a Belgian player, Gilles Elseneer, said he had been offered about $70,000 pounds…

Sep 27, 2007 4:27 PM CDT

A&P v. Workers in $1 M Veggie Video Suit

Two New Jersey brothers apparently meant to be funny when they filmed a gangsta rap parody, “Produce Paradise,” at the A&P supermarket at which they then worked. But management isn’t getting the joke. The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., which owns A&P, has not only fired the two shelf-stockers…

Aug 28, 2007 10:41 PM CDT

NBA Refs Lawyer Up in Betting Probe

The nation’s professional basketball referees have hired a criminal lawyer after an NBA announcement last week that it was retaining one of New York’s powerhouse corporate law firms to review the league’s gambling policies and its hiring, training and oversight of officials. Former federal prosecutor Gregory T. Magarity will represent…

Aug 28, 2007 9:40 PM CDT

NY Truth in Music Law Signed

New York’s governor has signed a Truth in Music law that imposes fine of up to $15,000 on music groups that misrepresent themselves as popular artists. The law was prompted by groups passing themselves off as artists like the Platters, Drifters and Coasters, Newsday reports. At least 18 other states…

Aug 22, 2007 2:20 PM CDT