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Guide For The Sports Lawyers Association 39th Annual Conference

The Sports Lawyers Association annual conference is a yearly meet-up for influential members of the Sports Law community.
The Sports Lawyers Association annual conference is a yearly meet-up for influential members of the Sports Law community.

What: The Sports Lawyers Association annual conference is a meet-up for many Sports Law practitioners around the world.

When: May 16-18, 2013.  Opening Remarks will be made at 12:25 p.m. on May 16.  The last panel of the event will be on Breaking into the Sports Law Industry, which begins at 1:45 p.m. on May 18.

Where: Intercontinental Buckhead, Atlanta, Gerogia

Official Conference Hashtag: Whether you are in attendance or not, follow along with those live Tweeting with the hashtag: #slac13

Conference Mobile App: http://codu.co/c108be.  Contains easy to read information on your mobile phone about the conference’s sessions, speakers, sponsors, attendees, etc.

Highlights:

  • The Legal Impact of Head Trauma on Professional Athletes panel will cover a topic that has been a matter of discussion at many law school symposia throughout the past year.  This panel will be moderated by Robert E. Wallace with panelists Kevin E. Crutchfield, MD (Director, Comprehensive Sports Concussion Program, LifeBridge Health Baltimore, MD), Tim English (NFLPA, Washington, DC) and Lawrence P. Ferazani (Senior Labor Litigation Counsel, NFL, New York, NY).  It will take place from 2:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. on May 16.
  • Other than the plethora of interesting subjects to be discussed in the break-out sessions on May 17, a panel that catches my attention is the one moderated by Debbie Spander, VP Broadcasting at Wasserman Media Group.  It is titled New Media: Legal Implications of the Growth of Twitter, Streaming and I-Pads on Sports Brands, Media Rights and Delivery and will begin at 10:45 a.m.  Others on the panel are Robert A. Hacker (VP Business and Legal Affairs at FOX Sports), Matthew Hong (SVP & General Manager, Sports Operations at Turner Sports), Jamie Hemann (Senior Director, Talent & Development at NFL Media) and Chris Kluwe (former Punter for the Minnesota Vikings).
  • There are a total of 10 break-out sessions on May 17.  The one that has me most interested is Online and Mobile Promotions 101: Don’t Strike Out! Know the Rules Before You Play the Promotions Game.  It is moderated by Nerissa McGinn of Loeb & Loeb and its sole panelist is John T. Cooper, Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at Turner Entertainment and Turner Sports for Turner Broadcasting.

I will be in attendance for the third consecutive year.  It was a blast sitting on a panel last year with Warren Zola and Donald Remy.  This year I get to sit back and enjoy the scene.  Look forward to seeing many of you in Atlanta.

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.