Sports Law - An Introduction for Lawyers

Introduction

Is there really such a thing as sports law? As sport becomes increasingly commercialised, globalised and regulated, lawyers are encountering a growing range of legal issues across the industry. From major commercial transactions and sponsorship agreements to athlete contracts, disciplinary proceedings, governance and regulatory disputes, the legal landscape surrounding sport is becoming increasingly complex.

This practical, short webinar provides an accessible introduction to the key principles and issues shaping sports law today. Rather than treating sports law as a single, self-contained area, it explores how established areas of law operate within the distinctive commercial, regulatory and competitive environment of sport.

Whether you are new to sports law, considering developing your practice in this area, or simply looking to broaden your understanding of the sector, this webinar will provide a concise and practical overview of the legal issues affecting modern sport.

The webinar will provide delegates with a clear foundation for understanding the sports law landscape, as well as a framework for exploring individual areas of sports law in greater depth.

What You Will Learn

The webinar will cover the following:

• Understanding ‘sports law’ and the debate over whether it should be regarded as a distinct legal discipline
• The key areas of law affecting sport, including contract, employment, commercial and corporate, intellectual property, competition, immigration, tort, criminal, equality and regulatory law
• What makes sport legally distinctive, including governing bodies, competition rules, disciplinary procedures, eligibility requirements, anti-doping regimes, transfer systems and specialist dispute-resolution mechanisms
• Sporting regulation and the law, including when sports organisations should be permitted to regulate themselves and when legal intervention may be appropriate
• The role of the sports lawyer in practice, with practical examples covering athlete and manager contracts, player transfers, club acquisitions, sponsorship, image and brand rights, disciplinary proceedings and anti-doping matters
• The interdisciplinary nature of sports law and the importance of combining specialist legal expertise with an understanding of the structures, rules and commercial realities of the sports industry
• The importance of sports law in modern professional sport, where athletes, clubs, governing bodies, sponsors and other stakeholders operate at the intersection of law, business, regulation and public interest