Categories
Colleges Sports Law

Getting Creative With Compliance

NCAA schools have beefed up their compliance departments since the passage of SPARTA and the incorporation of the UAAA in many states.  Athletic departments have a lot to lose if there is a violation of a student-athlete statute is found.  Additionally, the NCAA has its own separate set of rules regarding compliance.

Schools are on the look-out for unauthorized sports agent communication, money transfers to student-athletes, the signing of agency contracts, etc.  If a student-athlete violates a rule, he may lose his NCAA eligibility, but the entity that gets hit the hardest, is the educational institution.  Thus, schools are starting to get creative in educating its athletes on what is and is not permissible.

Some are even employing their mascots.  Just keep Conan O’Brien’s masturbating bear out of mind.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Heitner created Sports Agent Blog as a New Year's Resolution on December 31, 2005. Originally titled, "I Want To Be A Sports Agent," the website was founded with the intention of causing Heitner to learn more about the profession that he wanted to join, meet reputable individuals in the space and force himself to stay on top of the latest news and trends.

Heitner now runs Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., which is a law firm with many practice areas, including sports law and contract law. Heitner has represented numerous athletes and sports agents as legal counsel. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington from 2011-2014, where he created and taught a course titled, Sport Agency Management, which included subjects ranging from NCAA regulations to athlete agent certification and the rules governing the profession. Heitner serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law, where he teaches a Sports Law class that includes case law surrounding athlete agents and the NCAA rules.