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Duties of Sports Agents to Athletes and Statutory Regulation Thereof

I was recently published in Volume 7, Issue 3, Fall 2009 of the Dartmouth Law Journal.  The title of the piece is, Duties of Sports Agents to Athletes and Statutory Regulation Thereof.  I think that this will be a good read for anyone who is a regular visitor of this site.

Abstract: The Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act of 2004 (SPARTA) and the Uniform Athlete Agents Act (UAAA) have helped protect student-athletes and educational institutions against the harmful acts of unscrupulous sports agents. Statutory regulations have not adequately enforced agents’ duties to all athletes. Furthermore, while aspects of agency law, such as the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, player association regulations, and various Bar Association rules have helped fill some of the gaps, there remains a need for increased supervision over the sports agent profession. This article argues that student-athletes should have a statutory right to enforce the duties of sports agents and that all sports agents should have to be licensed under a federal registration system. In addition, it describes the need for a self-regulatory commission of sports agents to help weed out the unscrupulous agents who fail to fulfill their duties in the representation and solicitation of any athlete.

Click here for the full article and be sure to leave your comments below.

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.

5 replies on “Duties of Sports Agents to Athletes and Statutory Regulation Thereof”

Great article. I know that the contiinuous unethical behavior of some agents is a major reason why students shy away wanting to be an agent just because they don’t want to be linked to that. I liked the idea of a national registry as well. I was curious on what the UAAA regulations on Florida are

Agents have lots of methods for getting around the rules and with so much money on the line in a highly competitive industry, they will continue to outright ignore them or use runners to do the dirty work in-order to sign a player. You can pass all the laws or rules you want, Bill Duffy is still going to have some young guy who thinks he’s learning the business but is really just shielding the actual agent from having to pay O.J. Mayo himself.

Getting certified as an NBPA agent is as easy as having a pulse and a check they can cash… but that doesn’t matter because the real problem is the difficultly of actually being able to sign an NBA player, which is why people will continue to break the rules.

A panel of agents will do nothing… and besides, which agents do you put on it? Nearly all of them talk about integrity but are willing to break the rules in one way or another. A small number of agents will continue to represent the majority of players by using their power, money and relationships with college & youth basketball coaches.

There is little room for honest guys to sign significant talent and make a living full time in the cesspool that is the agent business.

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