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Terminate Urlacher? You Must Be Dreaming

Brian Urlacher

One benefit of going to law school is that you have the opportunity to take drafting classes, where you will learn tricks about terms to place in various types of contracts.  For instance, this past summer I took a class titled, Analysis and Drafting of Intellectual Property.  Our major project was a license agreement, with paragraph titles including, Payment of Royalties, Right of Appearance and Publicity, and Non-Endorsement of Competitors’ Products, all of which would normally be in any endorsement deal you strike for an athlete client.

Very rarely is a non-lawyer or law student exposed to a contract including these types of paragraphs, but today is your lucky day.  Dream Inc., a sports memorabilia company, terminated Brian Urlacher‘s 4-year, $1.2 million contract just days after he suffered a season-ending wrist injury.  Urlacher’s attorneys filed suit against Dream Inc. last Thursday, hoping to get at least $600,000 in damages for Dream Inc. breaching the contract.

After a bit of scouring the web, I was able to find the actual complaint that Urlacher’s attorneys have filed, which may be read below.

The complaint is only 12 pages long, a breeze for any law student who is used to assignments six times that size.  Our main concern is looking at the terms of the contract he signed.  Unfortunately, I cannot get my hands on Exhibit A, which is the actual contract, but the complaint does tell a good portion of what is embodied in the personal appearances and authentic autographs agreement Urlacher signed.  Additionally, Darren Rovell provides a nice breakdown.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.

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