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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In an effort to build Dan Leatherman’s online presence as he makes his way to the majors, Dynasty has put together his Official MySpace Page. Go ahead and add him as a friend.
6 replies on “Leatherman Gets MySpace, More Strikeouts”
Hmmm, I seem to recall you writing something similar about the pros passing on him, and you ended up getting ripped for it.
Yeah, maybe now the haters will find it to be a “credible statement” since someone who writes for a newspaper penned it.
both of you, i dont recall anyone hating or ripping darren for his comments. he said pro scouts were stupid for letting his client go and people said it was very unprofessional and there were probably reasons he got cut that he didnt know about. its nice to see his client is suceeding at the A level but that article never “penned: anything saying he is a superstar. it talked about his progress and said he is basically doing better than dudes who were drafted, thats it. anybody who follows baseball knows that the A level is not very high up, you still have to go through A+,AA,AAA which are completely different levels from independent ball and A. i think it is still too early to start judging the twins organization as making a mistake. if he continues to rise up through the rankings then i will agree darrens statement is credible. but its possible the twins saw leatherman as nothing more than an A ball pitcher and theres no point in keeping someone like that around who wont make it to the majors because the organization does not make money off of A ball “stars” A ball is knownt o be the level where college hitters are getting used to wodden bats and generally dont produce their best numbers thats why some pitchers have a hard time adjusting to the higher levels. i hope this makes sense maybe someone who follows baseball and actually knows the business can explain better
in terms of sports marketing, have you noticed myspace to play any special role in getting dan deals? has your view of getting clients profiles on networking sites helped in marketing them and getting their names out to the loyal fans?
Jason-
Great question. Surprisingly, Dan’s MySpace page has in fact generated quite a response from potential sponsors. We believe that as he makes his way up the ranks, his brand will only increase in stature. At the least, it cannot hurt.
thanks for the response Darren. I think there might be a problem with the blog because when I posted my comment yesterday its like it disappeared and then re-appeared this morning. I dont know if its only happeneng to me but you might want to look into it to see if other people are experiencing the same problem