Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) Update: NCAA transformation and student-athlete unionization, what attorneys should know now

John Long | Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP

John Long is a partner in the Houston office of Lewis Brisbois and a member of the Labor & Employment Practice.

He has more than 10 years of experience in collegiate sports law as a former university NCAA compliance officer and private practitioner.

John’s practice is exclusively focused on counseling institutions, athletics conferences, affiliated corporations and individuals in collegiate sports law matters, including those involving NCAA infractions, NCAA compliance and Title IX. He conducts investigations, provides advice and counsel, and he appears before NCAA committees on behalf of his clients. John has vast experience representing institutions in cases before the NCAA Committee on Infractions, Infractions Appeals Committee and NCAA Committee on Academics. Additionally, he is deeply experienced in providing advice and counsel to institutions and affiliates regarding legislative relief waivers, the NCAA Academic Performance Program, Gender Equity concerns and in conducting compliance reviews.

John is a published author on subjects concerning NCAA compliance and he frequently presents on sports law topics.

While attending Marquette University Law School, John earned the National Sports Law Institute’s Certificate of Sports Law and was published in the Sports Lawyers Association Journal. He was also a member of the Marquette Sports Law Review.

Gregg E. Clifton | Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP

Gregg E. Clifton is a partner in the Phoenix office of Lewis Brisbois and a member of the Entertainment, Media & Sports Practice.

Gregg has extensive experience in the collegiate and professional sports world. He has advised numerous professional franchises on general labor and employment issues, including Title III ADA regulatory compliance and wage and hour issues. Gregg serves as lead counsel for several Major League Baseball teams in their salary arbitration matters and has represented NCAA and NAIA collegiate clients regarding rules compliance, investigatory matters and in disciplinary hearings. In addition, he has handled Title IX investigations and compliance issues for NCAA and NAIA member institutions. Gregg has also worked extensively in the area of agent regulation and enforcement in professional and college sports and regularly provides counsel on issues relating to NCAA and NAIA amateurism issues and athlete eligibility questions. He has also served as an expert witness in matters involving sports agents’ work and responsibilities, as well as athlete compensation issues.

Prior to joining Lewis Brisbois, Gregg spent six years as chief operating officer and vice president of Team Sports for Gaylord Sports Management. He also served as president of the Athlete and Entertainment Division for famed sports attorney Bob Woolf’s firm, Woolf Associates, in Boston.

Gregg continues to counsel clients in the areas of collective bargaining negotiations, representation cases, arbitrations and National Labor Relations Board matters.

Gregg frequently serves as an expert speaker to law schools, including Harvard University, Boston College, Hofstra University, and Arizona State University, and bar associations regarding sports law issues, including agent regulation and salary arbitration. He is often called upon by national news media as a source for his commentary and opinion on legal issues in sports.

Session I – NCAA Transformation and the Future of NIL | 2:00pm – 3:00pm

• The intersection of Alston, antitrust law, and NIL regulation | 2:00pm – 2:15pm
• Third party involvement in name, image and likeness agreements, including institutional “collectives” | 2:15pm – 2:30pm
• The impact of NCAA “transformation committee” efforts on college athletics regulation and the decentralization of NCAA governance | 2:30pm – 2:45pm
• State and Federal legislative activity regarding NIL rights | 2:45pm – 3:00pm

Break | 3:00pm – 3:10pm

Session II – Student-Athlete Unionization | 3:10pm – 4:10pm

• The Potential Recognition of Student-Athletes as Employees | 3:10pm – 3:40pm
• • The Labor Board
    • How the General Counsel of the NLRB Plans to Change the Status of Student-Athlete
    • She Lacks Unilateral Authority to Make Change
    • Unfair Labor Practice Charges Needed to Accomplish Goal
    • Two Charges Currently Pending-Discuss Significance of the ULP’s and Who Filed the Charges
    • The Status of the Charges-The NLRB Process-What’s involved in Making Student-Athletes Employees Under the National Labor Relations Act
  • What Student-Athletes Employees Would Mean
    • Covered and Protected by the NLRA
    • Right to File ULPs
    • Right to Unionize
    • Right to Strike
    • Employment contracts with their universities

• The Potential for Student-Athlete Employee Status Through Litigation | 3:40pm – 4:10pm
  • Johnson et al v. NCAA et al-currently pending in U.S. District Court for Eastern District of Pennsylvania
    • What are the plaintiffs seeking? Employee status
    • Significance of case-Motion to Dismiss denied
    • History of prior cases-why is this case potentially different
    • Where are we headed?
  • Do current NIL laws and NIL status have any impact on these issues?