USA Sports Law - Case Study Example

Question One: Minnesota Vikings Professional Football Club Inc. Liability After the accident that occurred at the Metrodome during last Sunday's Vikings-Texans game, John Marsh, the general manager of the club, is concerned that Sherman's father might sue the club for the injuries that were inflicted on his son. As the general counsel of the club, my duty is to inform Marshal on the liability, of any, that the club might incur as a result of the accident. Issues As a legal counsel, I am more interested on the legal issues that surround this incident, more than the economical or social implications of the same. The following are the issues that are at play here: Johnny Sharman, a 17 year old fan, was injured in a melee during a game in the field. He is now in a coma and there is no hope for his complete recovery The melee was precipitated by a point kick that went over the protective screen to the spectators' stands Many fans were drunk and the ,melee was a result of the drunkards' fight for the ball Sharman and his father were not drunk The ticket that was purchased by the fans had a disclaimer that absolved the club from any injuries that occurred during a game Rules and Statutes Relevant to this Tragedy If Sharman's father sues the club, he will be doing so under the "Professional Sports Torts Act" (Epstein, 2008). Sports torts are "legal actions taken against professional athletes, teams, organizations and other parties in the sports field for a civil wrong done against and individual" (Epstein, 2008). In this case, Vikings will be accused of a tort against one of their spectators, Johnny Sharman. What Sharman will be fighting for is a recovery of the medical expenses incurred and other associated losses. This is because the injury was caused by the negligence on the part of Vikings. The courts may decide that Vikings owed a duty of care towards the fans that were attending their matches. Because Vikings breached that duty, the courts may rule that the defendant is liable to the damages that were caused by this negligence. There is the aspect of fans expectations. Sharman and his father, when they came to the field, expected to be protected from injuries arising from other spectators. It was the duty of the security agents of the club to refuse entry to the field fans who were drunk and who were liable to causing injuries to their fellow fans. This expectation may nullify the waiver on the back of the ticket. This expectation, though not stated on the ticket, was implied, or can be referred to as an officious bystander. The defence of Vikings will be that al fans "assumes the risk" of being injured during a game. This is expressly indicated on the back of the ticket, and a purchase of the ticket equals acceptance of the terms. As such, Vikings is partially liable or not liable at all. Sharman was negligent because he was not drunk, yet he went and sat together with drunkards who were likely to cause damage in the sport. Conclusion Vikings is either partially liable or not liable at all in this case. It is not fully liable given the fact that they had taken the precautions of erecting the wire mesh and inserting the waiver clause on the ticket. Sharman is partially or fully liable because the ticket indicates that he is liable, and he went to sit with drunkards. Question Two: Billy Rogers' NBA Draft Legal Memorandum Your recent problems, as Billy Rogers and an athlete at State University, stem from the fact that you are unable to attain the relevant academic qualifications for the forthcoming NBA draft. Your bane has been the refusal by the New School to admit you for the independent degree program, whereby you could have acquired a degree and qualified for the draft. It is my understanding that you have made three trials, all to no avail. It is only after the third trial that you became aware of the alleged irregularities with which your application was handled. Allegations of plagiarism and dropping of some topics from your dean led to the school admission officials' overturning of the decision that was made by the admission committee accepting your application. Issues Following is a list of the legal issues that are involved in this case: You have met all the requirements for a draft, except one. You attained passing grades, and have accumulated credits. However, you have been unable to enrol for a degree program You have applied twice for admittance to the New School and once for admittance to the general college. All these applications have failed Twice, you have been accepted by the admissions' committee, and twice the school officials have rejected you Your dean have accused you of plagiarism and irresponsibility This has led to the declaration that you are ineligible for competing for your final season that will lead to your NBA drafting Rules "Most courts are of the view that participation in intercollegiate athletics is not a constitutionally protected interest" (Epstein, 2008). This means that it is not the constitutional right of the student to participate in the school games. What this means is that you cannot take legal action against your school for refusing to engage you in the forthcoming basketball season. But you can sue the school for refusing you entrance into independent degree program at the New School. This refusal will cost you a slot at the NBA's draft. A case in point is that of Hall v University of Minnesota (Epstein, 2008). Hall attained the average grades required. But the school denied him to play because he did not have enough credits for one academic program. His defence was that his transfer application "was rejected in bad faith and in the absence of due process". He appealed the decision and won. Judge Miles, who was presiding over the district court, argued that "the plaintiff has sufficient property interest to play basketball because the competition will affect his chances of getting drafted by a professional team" (Epstein, 2008). The school had no option but to let him play. The same happened in your case. You will not be allowed to play because you have not attained one requirement; degree enrolment. But the refusal to admit you for the degree program was done in bad faith on the part of the school officials. There was no due process. This is because the dean did not provide the evidence to support the accusations levelled against you. He just made baseless claims. Your case is further made stronger by the fact that the admission committee had accepted your application. Conclusion and Recommendations As your attorney, it is my belief that you have a case here. I recommend you to take legal action against the team for denying you admission to the season's game. This is because the claim that you have not enrolled for a degree will be watered down by the fact that the denial to enrol was unprocedural. It will be easier to take the school team to task than it will be for you to appeal the decision that was made by the school officials. This is because the latter will need you to prove that you did not plagiarise and you should be able to explain why you dropped the core courses. Question Three: Clauses in a Player's Contract Every sport has its unique clauses that are inserted in the contract that the player has to sign with the team. Just like in any other form of contracts, this one entails the agreements between the two parties-the player on one hand and the team on the other- to perform certain duties. However, despite the differences that exist in the various sports we have, the standard players' contract is more uniform across all the fields. The following are the clauses that are to be found in a standard player's contract of a league player. The writer will take as his case study the standard player's contract of a baseball player. The following are the clauses: 1: Salary This clause provides for the amount of base salary that the player will be entitled to (Wise & Meyer, 2007). By the year 2005, this clause guaranteed the baseball player of a salary "negating many of the standard grounds for termination" (Wise & Meyer, 2007). The salary is agreed upon between the team and the player or the player's representative. If the player is from a foreign country, the parties agree on the currency that will be used to settle the player's salary. They might agree on the player's country of origin's currency or the team's country of origin currency. The duration within which the salary is to be paid is also stipulated. For instance, it might be during a certain season or for a certain period of time like two years. After the expiry of this period, the parties can renew the contract with the option of renegotiating the terms. In 2004, Troy Glaus signed a four year contract worth $45 million with the Arizona Diamondbacks (Wise & Meyer, 2007). The significance of this clause as far as the player is concerned cannot be downplayed. It guarantees the player of a basic salary regardless of the performance of the player during the said period. Despite the fact that the team might lose, or the player might not score anything and his performance deteriorates during the period, the salary is assured (Wise & Meyer, 2007). The player can sue the team for refusing to pay him for any reason that was not covered in the contract. This is because refusal to pay by the team amounts to breach of contract. 2: Services This is the clause that covers the expectations that the team has of the player as far as his conduct is concerned. It states that "the professional player agrees to render his professional services as a baseball player to the club under the direction, dependence and subordination of the same" (Wise & Meyer, 2007). The player is also expected to be at the training camps and at the field as required. The presence of the player at these places is not upon his discretion. He does not have the ability to wake up one morning and decide that he will not attend the game or training camp. This clause has been accused of turning the player into a slave of the team (Wise & Meyer, 2007). This is because the freedom of the player is taken away. He cannot control his own timetable. This is done by the team manager and the coach. 3: Expenses This clause states that the team "must cover proper and necessary expenses" incurred by the player during the period of the contract (Wise & Meyer, 2007). This means that the expenses incurred by the player including the lodgings, travel, food and others are footed by the team. Troy Glaus, mentioned earlier in this paper, was promised $250,000 per annum in order to cover for his "personal business expenses" (Wise & Meyer, 2007). The significance of this clause to the player is that he is abler to lead a comfortable lifestyle depending on his "juice" (Wise & Meyer, 2007). This means that the more famous and experienced players are the ones that receive the highest amount of expenses and vice versa. 4: Conduct This clause is covered in paragraph 7(b) (1) of Major League Baseball uniform player's contract (Wise & Meyer, 2007). Here, the player is considered to have breached the contract if he "fails, refuses or neglect to conform his personal conduct to the standards of good citizenship and good sportsmanship" (Wise & Meyer, 2007). This means that the contract can be terminated of the club feels that the conduct of the player is uncouth and injurious to the clubs performance and reputation. If for example the player was racist and abusive, this may call for disciplinary actions and possible termination of the contract. The significance of this is that the player is kept on a tight lease by the club. He has to exhibit the best form of conduct to avoid termination. He should not abuse or indulge in other repugnant conducts. The cohesion of the team is enhanced since the players are prohibited from such conducts as slander of the team or the managers. 5: Physical Condition This clause provides that the player has to be in "good physical condition throughout the season" (Wise & Meyer, 2007). This is to enable him to play in this demanding game. If the team doctor is of the opinion that the player is not in good condition, he can be suspended till he recovers. His salary will be scaled down accordingly. The only exception is when the injury occurred during a game. This clause has led the players to change their lifestyle and ensure that they are not endangering their physical condition in anyway. It is the reason why most of them has personal physician, in addition to the team doctor. Many have taken the initiative of insuring themselves against such physical injuries such that the insurer pays the lost salary as a result of the injury. 6: Prohibited Substances The player agrees to be subjected to medical tests in order to ensure that he has not taken any prohibited substances. This include taking of performance enhancing drugs like steroids. Many players have had their contracts cancelled when the tests for these substances turned positive. Many players have been forced to change their lifestyle and avoid taking illegal drugs that may result in their contracts getting cancelled. 7: Assignment Clause This is also referred to as the reserve clause in baseball. It has been the bane of many players whereby the player is not allowed to play for another club when the he has signed a contract with another. The team reserves the right to trade the player or assign him to another team. If the player decides to play for another club when the contract is still in force, this is a breach. This has made it impossible for the players to move to clubs of their choice. This is because the club that the player entered into contract with may decide to assign him to another club that the player does not want. 8: Bonus Provisions One of the bonus provisions is that of raising the salary of the player if he meets a certain target, for example when he scores a certain number of goals. Another bonus clause is the one that provides for the provision of certain gifts and handouts to the player when he signs the deal. This involves giving gifts to the wives and buying them cars. Raising the status and level of the player is used as another bonus provision in case the player exceeds some limits in terms of performance. The significance of these provision clauses is that they do motivate the players leading to better results for the team. Question 4: Advanced Media v CBC Distribution The United States district court, Eastern Division of Missouri, ruled in favour of CBC Distribution by declaring that the plaintiff did not contravene the rights of privacy of the players (Tishyevich, 2008). The defendant appealed this decision to the Supreme Court. When this case is brought before the Supreme Court, the appellate is likely to be denied petition for a writ of certiorari (Tishyevich, 2008). At the end of the day, CBC is likely to carry the day and the ruling of the eighth circuit court will be sustained. CBC does not need to have a license in order to use the names and data on the players of the major league. This because, according to the circuit judge, "the players do not have a right to publicity in their names" (Tishyevich, 2008). Even if they do have-as claimed by Advanced Media- right to publicity, the "first amendment takes precedence over such a right" (Tishyevich, 2008). The information was aimed to provide entertainment to the fantasy football players. As such, it was protected by this amendment despite the fact that CBC was making profit. The names of the players are not copyright. This has the implication that CBC did not contravene any copyright laws, as the other party alluded. Neither are the statistics about the players "intellectual property" (Tishyevich, 2008). Question Five: Moore v Bertuzzi The genesis of this case can be traced back to the incident that took place on February 16, 2004. Steve Moore hit Canucks player causing him to miss three games on top of injuries. Three weeks after this, the two teams met again and this is where Bertuzzi attacked Moore causing injuries. As a result of this, Moore has been unable to play hockey ever since. Bertuzzi apologised for this incident after a few days. NHL suspended him indefinitely. He lost half a million dollars in earnings. On December 22 the same year, Bertuzzi pleaded guilty to the charges that were preferred on him by the state. He was accused of "assault causing bodily harm". Moore filed a civil lawsuit in 2007 which was rejected in terms of location where it was filed. August of the same year, Bertuzzi was readmitted to the NHL. The current case was filed on February 2006. The plaintiff is seeking recovery in terms of lost earnings and injury. The team which Bertuzzi was playing for, the Canucks, are also part of the defendants, together with the parent company. In order to win this case, there are some things that the plaintiff needs to prove to the court. To get the $15 million pecuniary damage settlement, he needs to prove that the defendant was the direct cause of the injuries. It is a fact that Bertuzzi started the fight. However, it is also a fact that players from both teams are the ones that scrambled on top of the plaintiff, sinking him to the ice and causing the injuries. This goes for the $1 million in "aggravated damages". For the $2 million punitive damages, he has to prove that Bertuzzi really deserves to be punished further. The defendant had apologised publicly for the incident. He has also suffered in terms of lost income and other psychological sufferings when he was suspended by NHL. The plaintiff has to prove that this is not punishment enough. Bertuzzi has several defences. The first one is that he has apologised for the incident, showing how remorseful he was. He has also suffered loss of income and emotional and psychological pain when he was suspended. He could also claim that the kick that he gave Moore was not the cause of the injuries. Rather, it was the scampering by the players that led to the injuries. As a signatory of the contract between him and the team, he could claim that he was acting on behest of his head coach. Crawford was quoted as saying that Moore will pay for the damages he caused Markus Naslund. Question Six: David Craig's Punishment Craig has several legal claims that he can make against the school and the team so that he can be allowed to continue wrestling and be able to earn that scholarship. One of them is the undue process through which the judgement was passed. Any constitution, including the good conduct handbook of Craig's school, has a provision for a dues process. It is stated clearly that disciplinary action will only be passed after a "thorough investigation" has been carried out. In Craig's case, the principal and the superintendent did not carry out any investigation on the violation. The plausibility of this defence will however be dented by the damning evidence of the police who carried out the sobriety test that Craig failed. Craig could also claim that the law was not applied equally to all the "violators" of the code. The girls, even after the expiry of the 48 hours grace period, were punished like they have confessed earlier. The selective application of the law will bring to question the sincerity of the school. The administration will seem to be acting in bad faith in order to net Craig. However, taking this course will lead to the assumption that Craig has accepted the fact that he contravened the code of conduct. However, the defence will have several defences that they will use in order to sustain the ruling of the school's disciplinary committee. They will claim that they have done their investigations and that was why they were able to trace the police who proved that Craig was drunk on the material day. Another line of defence is that the girls were remorseful and that is why the punishment was lenient. Question Seven: Abdul Jabbar v GMC The plaintiff claims that the defendant used his name and image in a commercial without the consent or knowledge of the plaintiff. One of the issues here is that of publicity rights. Kareem has the right to the publicity of his name. The sports laws sates that any players name, image, voice or facsimile should not be used without the consent of the player or the body or person that the player has authorised to do so (Epstein, 2008). Since this did not happen in this case, GMC can be accused of illegally using the name of the player here. This is regardless of the fact that the defendant no longer uses that name. The information that is referred to by the advert places the plaintiff at the time when he used the name Lew. The Lew of that time is the same as the Lew of now, albeit under a different title. The fact that GMC withdrew the advert after they were confronted by the complainant further proves their guilt. However, GMC might argue their case by stating that Kareem is not Lew. Hence, he has no right to claim that he be paid for the use of a name that is not his. It is fact that Kareem is legally changed his name from Lew to Kareem sometime back. As such, he has no legal basis to claim the name again. GMC may state that they were only willing to negotiate with Lew. They might also claim that Lew is not a copyright name and therefore they are not entitled to pay for the use of that name. The first amendment also denies the complainants of the publicity right, and hence he has no basis claiming to be paid because a name was used. Despite the defence that will be put forth by the defendant, it is highly that the court may rule in favour of Kareem. This is because despite the fact that he changed the name, he is the owner of the title "most outstanding player" in the period that is alluded to by the commercial. Question Eight: Bengals Loyalty Clause The controversial clause was inserted by the team in 2000 (Wise & Meyer, 2007). It states that Bengals "in its sole discretion", may withhold a signing bonus. This was if the management felt that the player "made any public comment to the media that contradicts player's obligation of loyalty to the team" (Wise & Meyer, 2007). This has the net effect of denying the players to criticise the team management in public. I believe that John Jones should not sign this contract if the clause is inserted. This is because the team has the discretion of deciding when one is loyal and not. As such, this can be abused to settle personal scores by the management. They are the ones who define what loyalty is and what is not. This clause is risky given the fact that it takes away the player's freedom of speech. Freedom of speech is one of the human rights, and no one, not even a team manager, should deny the team members to express their dissatisfaction with the management. The legal ramifications of this clause are far reaching. If John happens to say anything to the media that is deemed as been not loyal to the team, he will risk losing his salary and having his contract revoked. Since it will be very hard to convince the club to remove the clause in totality, the negotiations for the contract can be carried out on the basis of accommodation between the two parties. The terms of the clause should be discussed and agreed upon. The offending sentences like the one that gives the management discretion on determining loyalty should be removed. References Epstein, S. A. (2008). Sports' law. Dublin, IChapters Books, 65-68. Tishyevich, X. D. (2008). Advanced Media v CBC Distribution: Supreme Court rules in favour of Fantasy Sports. Retrieved from http://jolt.law.harvard.edu/digest/copyright/major-league-baseball-advanced-media-v-cbc-distribution-and-marketing; on 15th July, 2009. Wise, A. N. & Meyer, A. B. (2007). International sports: Law and business. London: Kluwer Law International, 956, 957. Read More