Tag Archives: Antitrust

Each week The Sports Esquires keep track of the sports law headlines so you don’t have to. Just in time for spring training, baseball has dominated the news this week with the Cubs’ lawsuit and antitrust issues. The Hernandez trial continues, as do the MLS labor negotiations.

It finally happened. After beating around the bush for years – including multiple lawsuits against the City of Chicago and the Commission on Chicago Landmarks – a group of owners that operate the rooftop seating clubs on the buildings behind Wrigley Field sued the Chicago Cubs and chairman Tim Rickets in the Northern District of Illinois. The Rooftop Owners allege a number of claims stemming from the Cubs’ ongoing, Wrigley Field “expansion” project.

Each week The Sports Esquires keep track of the sports law headlines so you don’t have to. In this week’s Sports Law Links: rugby and marathons make appearances, more Penn State wrangling, a new NHL concussion suit, and the MLS labor dispute.

As usual, NFL scandals dominate the sports law world. But don’t miss the fascinating soccer stories and in-depth coverage of match-fixing issues in this week’s edition of Sports Law Links.

2014 was a historic year in the world of sports law. From the looks of it, 2015 is shaping up to be just as intriguing. Here are the top sports law stories to follow in the upcoming year

Each week we keep you updated on what’s new in the sports law world. Here’s our first edition of Sports Law Links in 2015.

Once again we’ve got you covered for your holiday sports law reading. All of us here at The Sports Esquires wish you a happy New Year. Don’t forget to subscribe to get the Sports Law Links as a weekly newsletter in your inbox in 2015.

The holidays are a great time to catch up on what’s going on in the sports law world. The Sports Esquires wish you all a happy holiday season.

The FCC’s repeal of its Sports Blackout Rules was merely grandstanding and has no tangible effect. However, it does signal a public recognition that the four major sports leagues –primarily the NFL because it benefits the most from blackout – no longer need a government crutch to operate and remain profitable. The only way real progress could be made on this issue is if Congress repealed the antitrust immunity granted to home blackouts. Then and only then would the NFL and its broadcast partners alter the current blackout policy in order to avoid the black cloud of treble damages an antitrust suit brought by fans, bars, local networks, and advertisers alike would bring.

Much has been written about the indefinite suspension of Ray Rice, including calls for Roger Goodell to resign or be fired. But few if any articles have taken the time to explain what exactly happened and what could happen from a legal standpoint. The vast majority of the conversation about the suspension has focused on righteous finger-wagging at the NFL, Roger Goodell, and the Ravens. While each of those parties deserves their fair share of scorn, there is an opportunity to learn, grow and move forward that is being missed.