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Canyon College

COURSE SYLLABUS: Sports Law

Course Title: Department: Instructor: Prerequisites:

LS387 - Sports Law Legal Studies Barry B. Eskanos, MPA, J.D. E-Mail Vita None

Required Text: Online Bookstore

Sports Law, Cases and Materials, Robert M. Jarvis, Phyllis Coleman, 2000, West Group
ISBN #: 0314238905

Seminar Day and Time:

Wednesdays from 12:00 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. EDT
Teusdays from 10:30 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. EDT

Course Description:

After completing this course, the student is expected to have acquired the skills necessary for understanding the basic issues surrounding sports law; the applicable statutes, or where to find them; the administrative law issues impacting sports law; and also the relevant contract and tort issues. The course is designed to give the student exposure to case law, statutory law, and the relevant acts. This class is designed to be a survey of the legal issues associated with what is commonly referred to as Sports Law. As you can see by reviewing this syllabus, we will explore a wide range of topics. The topics we will cover during this course include, but are not limited to:

1. Tort Law
2. Contract Law
3. Intellectual Property Rights in Professional Athletics
4. Discrimination
5. Stadium and Arena Financing
6. Antitrust Law
7. Labor & Employment Law

Class & Meetings:

Sports Law will meet via live via seminar one time per week. I plan to offer two seminars per week, a half-hour long. One seminar will be during the day, and the other will be in the evening, (Eastern Time). The day and evening seminars are intended to be the same, but, because of the live discussion, may be a little different. They will cover the same material, however. You need only attend one of the two for each week, whichever best accommodates your schedule.

Grading:

Grading for this course will be based upon the following:

Final Paper (Final) = 40%

Short paper (Mid-Term) = 40%

Seminar Participation = 20%

Additionally, I reserve the right to add points totaling 2% of the total course grade for exceptional class participation. Exceptional class performance means routine, thoughtful contribution. You need not always be right, but merely commenting routinely will not be sufficient.

Finally, I am always happy to discuss graded assignments with students after they are returned. Any discussion, however, will be limited to an academic discussion. I will not debate grades or justify a grade. Notwithstanding the above, I am only human, and from time to time, an arithmetic and/or other clerical error may occur. I make every effort to ensure that no such errors occur, but if I have made an error I will gladly correct my mistake.

Short Paper:

The short paper discussed above is meant to be just that... short. I am not looking for a long dissertation. I am really looking for something that could pass for a newspaper article. You should assume that you have been approached by your local newspaper and asked to write an article for the Sports Section. You have been told that the paper has space for roughly 1250 words (plus or minus 250). You should assume that the reader has interest in the topic (no doubt because of your eye-catching headline), but you should not assume the reader has any sophisticated knowledge about the legal subject matter you will be discussing. You will be graded, at least partially, on whether you address your audience appropriately. You should not talk down to the reader, nor should you use terminology that is likely to go over the readers’ head. If you do find it necessary to use terminology you should define the term for the reader.

Your paper may be on any topic covered in the syllabus, discussed in class, or discussed in one of the reading assignments. The paper must deal in some way with Sports Law. It should be double-spaced. I would also like the word count at the end (don't panic, most word processors do this for you).

Because this is a newspaper article you should not give Blue Book citations. You should consider using quotes and you should not be afraid to refer to legal authorities, even though you need not give Blue Book citations.

The Short Paper must be handed in via email to me, or posted to the Canyon College Web Site no later than the start of your fifth class of the session. (I put that in that particular way, as students can begin this course at any time, and complete the course within eight weeks). You should put your name on the paper. I encourage you to talk to me about your papers. You may find I can provide useful information and/or insight. Notwithstanding my willingness to discuss the paper, I will not review any drafts prior to their final submission.

PLEASE NOTE -- LATE PAPERS WILL SUFFER A GRADE REDUCTION. A paper that is up to 1 week late will be penalized 20% of the available points. A paper that is between 1 and 2 weeks late will be penalized 40% of the available points. A paper that is over 2 weeks late will not be accepted and all available points will be forfeited.

Final Examination:

The final examination will be due after completing eight weeks. The final examination will be open book and open notes examination. The final examination is your CHOICE of one of the two following:

OPTION ONE: THINK PAPER

Do a 3-5 page think paper on any topic we discussed during the session; or any topic covered since your previous paper. Your paper may be on any topic covered in the second half of the syllabus, discussed in class since your last paper, or discussed in one of the reading assignments. The paper must deal in some way with Sports Law. It should be double-spaced. Because this is a final exam, any references to case law should give Blue Book citations (the case name in italics, and the citation, etc.). You should consider using quotes and you should not be afraid to refer to legal authorities.

The Paper must be handed in via email or posted onto the web site no later than one week after the conclusion of your last of the eight-week session. (I put that in that particular way, as students can begin this course at any time, and complete the course within eight weeks). You should put your name on the paper. I encourage you to talk to me about your papers. You may find I can provide useful information and/or insight. Notwithstanding my willingness to discuss the paper, as with your mid-term paper, I will not review any drafts prior to their final submission.

OPTION TWO:

Your client, “Hercules Jones”, a famous WWE wrestler, has come to you to renegotiate some terms of his new contract with his promoter, Donna Queen. Donna has told you that Hercules needs to write up a list of items that Donna will put in the contract to be presented to the WWE. Hercules, even though a great wrestler, is as dumb as the wrestling mat. He seeks your advice on what should be included in the new contract. Some of the things that Hercules wants are as follows:

1. The money that is standard in the industry is $65, 000 per match, with $100,000 if it is a title match. There are 104 matches scheduled for Hercules per year around the country (Thursdays and Saturday Nights). They will be televised and filmed before a stadium audience.
2. He has been approached by Hasbro, who wants an action figure that looks like him. Hercules does not know how much, if any, the W.W.E. gets of this money. He wants as much as possible, but also wants the W.W.E. to promote his doll (sorry, action figure). Hercules also wants to promote other products. He has created a sleeveless t-shirts exactly like he wears on the mat, that tear off, etc. He wants you to suggest products, and how his money is shared from the sale of the products, and some advice (for extra credit – you can write a memo to Hercules, advising him regarding his new invention).
3. He wants a large jar full of only green M&M’s (plain, not peanut, because he hates spitting out the seeds) in his dressing room before each match. He believes that they are a sign of virility.
4. While at a restaurant, Hercules was asked by another patron whether wrestling was real. He asked Hercules if the chairs they used to bash each other on the mat were real. Hercules said they were. The patron disagreed. A fight ensued, and Hercules ended up bashing the guy with a restaurant chair to show him that it really looked the same. (For extra credit, Hercules says that because the guy in the restaurant started it, Hercules wants to counter-sue the guy for the fight in the restaurant. Does he have an argument?) Hercules wants to include in his contract that any objects used during the wrestling matches are “real” and not stunt objects. You are not sure this is a good idea, considering the fact that because of the restaurant incident, a number of other wrestlers have threatened to beat your client with a chair. After discussions, you convince your client, after considering the threats, to require the use of “stunt objects” if he gets hit, but real available to him if he wants to hit others.
5. Other issues. Hercules has asked you to consider other issues and put them in the contract. List the issues and tell Hercules why you find them important.

Office Hours:

Office Hours will be held weekly. I plan on having two hours per week and by appointment. They will be via live chat, unless other arrangements are necessary. The times will be selected during the first class depending on the schedule of the students and my schedule for teaching other classes.

Textbook:

The textbook I have selected is Sports Law Cases and Materials by Robert M. Jarvis. This text is copyrighted 1999 and is published by West Group (ISBN 0-314-23890-5).

While the Jarvis textbook is both very good and very new, it will be necessary from time to time to supplement the text with other materials, particularly when we are discussing specialized topics such as Labor Law, Antitrust and Intellectual Property. I anticipate being able to make these materials available on the Internet, on disk, or perhaps under WWW.FINDLAW.COM. More information on these supplemental materials will be provided as the class progresses.

During the course of the semester I will search for suitable study guides. Presently, the only one I have found that I would recommend is Sports Law in a Nut Shell by Walter T. Champion, Jr., which is copyrighted 1993 and is published by West Group (ISBN 0-314-01642-2). As with any Nutshell, however, it is rather basic. Nevertheless, you may find it useful to help structure your studies.

Reading Assignments:

With respect to reading assignments and class participation, every student is expected to have read the reading for each class, with the exception of the first class. During the live seminars, I reserve the right to randomly call upon all students and inquire regarding the reading assignments.

LEARNING ACTIVITIES:

This course is comprised of instructor led discussions, written assignments, submissions, and exams. Students are encouraged to contribute to the discussions with their own knowledge and experiences. Reinforcement of learning is accomplished through course and/or chapter objectives and quizzes for each lesson. Written assignments provide students with the opportunity to sharpen their analytical and writing skills. Direct communication occurs between students and instructor through the classroom setting, e-mail, message board, chat rooms, or phone. Attendance at the live chat is not mandatory, but it has been found to be enjoyable by the students and a great way to interact with the professor and classmates.

Policies and Procedures:

Exams and projects are graded on a scale of 100 with 73 or above being satisfactory or at the 2.0 GPA level. An academic average of 63% is required in order to receive credit for the course. Students are encouraged to be in class weekly and class participation is weighted in the final grade computation. It is the student’s responsibility to complete the material covered if lessons are missed and to see that all missed lessons are made up in compliance with the College guidelines. Make-up work undertaken to complete a course after the course has ended may sometimes satisfy grading criteria. A total of 100 points is available for this course, as follows:

Class expectations for message board postings and seminar participation:
The expectation for student messages on the message board and in the seminar are that the messages will reflect a solid understanding of the materials. The message should contain an analysis of the issues involved in the posted discussion questions. In order to perform this analysis, the student will have read and reviewed all of the materials for the week. They will have reviewed the posted questions and postulated answers as well as follow up questions. Students should post messages that demonstrate that they have analyzed the information covered in connection with the discussion questions to come to logical conclusions.

Postings to the message board must be complete by the end of the lesson week. (Sunday, midnight, EDT.) Postings after that time will impact the overall participation grade but will not affect the message board grade for that week.

Seminars begin at __:00 EDT. Those turning in assignments late or failing to turn in assignments may have a reduction in their grade. Those who arrive at __:15 pm EDT or later will be required to submit the alternative assignment to receive full credit.

Written Assignments, Message Board Participation, Seminar Participation and your Overall Participation grade will be graded in the following manner on a weekly basis and is a required element of the course:

Points	Participation Grading Rubric
0	Student failed to post any messages either on the message board or in the seminar.
1	Student posted brief messages to either the message board and/or the seminar, however they did not meet posted class expectations. These messages did not add to the substantive discussion of the topics for that lesson.
2	Student added more detail to the messages posted on the message board or the seminar discussion, but not both. They identified important issues or concepts but failed to provide substantial original contribution in both settings.
3	Students were able to make a substantial, original contribution to the message board and the seminar discussion by identifying important issues or concepts but did not provide evidence of original analysis of the discussion questions.
4	Student's work met the posted expectations for student work. Student provided evidence of original analysis of the discussion question on the message board and in the seminar discussion.

Late policy:

To earn full credit for an assignment, students are required to submit the assignment by midnight on Sunday (EDT), the last day of the lesson in which the assignment was posted. Students may submit an assignment up to two weeks after the close of the lesson in which the assignment was given. However, five points will be deducted for those assignments coming in 1 – 4 days late; ten points will be deducted for those assignments coming in 5 – 7 days late, fifteen points will be deducted for those assignments coming in 8 – 14 days late.

Online Attendance/Tardiness Policy:
(Effective July 15, 2002)

Canyon College Distance Education courses have both synchronous and asynchronous requirements. Synchronous (or real-time) learning experiences called “Seminars” happen at the same time for all students in a section. Asynchronous learning experiences happen throughout the course and do not require student participation at a scheduled time. The specific requirements for attendance are the following:

1) Students are required to attend class a minimum of two calendar days per week for each 2 or 4-credit course and a minimum of 3 calendar days per week for each 6-credit course by logging on to the course site. Courses are presented in weekly lessons. The weekly attendance period begins Mondays at 12:00a.m. EST and ends on Sundays at 11:59pm EST.

2) Students who are absent from classes 21 consecutive calendar days (excluding scheduled breaks) will be administratively withdrawn from the program.

3) Synchronous Seminars are an integral part of the learning experience. Lack of an appropriate level of course participation may affect the course grade. Alternative assignments must be completed for absences in synchronous Seminars according to the instructor’s syllabus.

4) Students dismissed due to non-attendance must apply for readmission by following re-entry procedures.

5) Students may appeal to the academic dean if they feel an error has been made in their attendance calculation.

6) Tardiness is a disruption to good learning environments and is discouraged. Students in attendance less that 50 percent of any scheduled class may be considered absent for that class.

7) Absence will be considered excused and not count toward the 20% limit if the absence is for "good cause." "Good cause" is limited to serious illness of the student or a close family member, death of a close family member, military service, observance of a religious holiday, or a mandated court appearance. If a student misses a class for "good cause", the student shall provide a written statement explaining the absence at the next class meeting. If you are having computer problems, you need to remember that at public libraries, computers are available. Also, many cities have “cyber cafes”. It is your responsibility to meet with the Canyon College Guidelines regarding virus protection, etc., as well. Please be considerate of others and make sure that any files you download have been properly scanned by current virus software.

8) Any student who is unprepared for class may be counted absent for that day.

Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism:
(Effective April 15, 2002)

All academic assignments are to be the work of the individual student. The following are examples of dishonesty, or unethical and unprofessional behavior:

• Plagiarism - Using another person’s words, ideas, or results without giving proper credit to that person, giving the impression that it is a student’s own work
• Any form of cheating on examinations
• Altering academic or clinical records
• Falsifying information for any assignment
• Partly or wholly completing an assignment for another student or submitting assignments partially or wholly completed by another student.

Charges of academic dishonesty brought against a student shall be made in writing by the faculty member and submitted to the program chair or academic dean for investigation. Academic dishonesty is a serious offense and may result in the following sanctions:

Warning: written or verbal notice that any further misconduct may result in further disciplinary actions
Failure or forfeiture: loss of all or part of the credit for work conducted in association with academic dishonesty
Suspension: removal from the College for a determined period of time
Dismissal: permanent removal from the college

If you are going to properly use the ideas of another, you must do the following:

• Know the difference between paraphrasing and quoting.
• When paraphrasing, make sure it is not too close to the original AND credit paraphrases in the same manner you credit direct quotes.
• Put phrases, sentences, or paragraphs in quotation marks when copying a direct quote.
• Credit any source that you have used, either through paraphrasing or through direct quotes.
• To properly credit a source, you must identify the author, the publication title, date, publisher, place, and page number. For example:
• If you’re still unclear about when to attribute credit to an author, speak to your professor to help clarify this issue.

Office Hours: My office hours will be _______________________, from __pm to __ pm EDT.

You may contact me during those times via email or instant messenger. My email addresses are: bbeskanos@canyoncollege.edu; BBEskanos@aol.com; BBEskanos@Yahoo.com; BBEskanos@hotmail.com. If you wish to use the Instant Messaging service, my screen name for all of them are “BBESKANOS”. You can sign up for any of these services at www.aol.com, www.yahoo.com, or www.msn.com, and provide the class with your user name. If you try to contact me at any other time, I may not be able to talk to you at that moment. We hopefully can set up a time to discuss your questions or concerns.

Course Outline:

Lesson 1

____ Read the Syllabus.
____ Introduce Yourself to Your Professor and Classmates.
____ Read Chapters 1-2, pages 1-126.
____ Go to the web site, www.Findlaw.com, and familiarize yourself with that site. Review the site and figure out how to find the various sports law related documents, contracts, statutes, etc. If the book asks you to review a statute, or outside case, it is not mandatory due to the volume of information already being drilled into your heads. However, if you have the additional time, you can use www.Findlaw.com to access the statutes for free online

WRITING ASSIGNMENT: Prepare and submit a written legal brief on the following cases:

1. PASSANTE v. McWILLIAM, pages 21-27;
2. IN RE FELDBERG, pages 27-33;
3. DOBBS v. DOBBS pages 38-41;
4. CONIGLIO v. HIGHWOOD SERVICES, INC., pages 45-52.

Do problem 5 on page 53 for extra credit (25 points)

____ Attend Seminar – Introduction to SPORTS LAW and FANS. Students and professor will discuss how to write a general issues facing the SPORTS ATTORNEY; Discuss the issues relating to sports fans; and mutual expectations.

Those unable to attend the live discussion:
Please read the live discussion and post your comments and respond to the hypothetical situations posted by the professor.

Lesson 2

____ Read Chapter 3, pp.134-289.

WRITING ASSIGNMENT: Prepare and submit a written legal memorandum responding to the following questions:

Problem 16, page 160;
Problem 18, page 201; and
Problem 21, page 271.

____ Attend Seminar – Owners, Admission, Controls, Competitors. We will discuss various issues surrounding ownership, as well as tactics an owner can use to garner support, etc.

Those unable to attend the live discussion:
Please read the live discussion and post your comments and respond to the hypothetical situations posted by the professor.

Lesson 3

____ Read Chapter 4 pp.289-442.

WRITING ASSIGNMENT:
Brief the following cases:

KNAPP v. NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY, pages 289-302;
GONZALES v. DON KING PRODUCTIONS, INC., pages 315-318;
BROWN v. PRO FOOTBALL, INC., pages 339-347; and
McKICHAN v. ST. LOUIS HOCKEY CLUB, L.P., pages 375-379.

____ Attend Seminar– PLAYERS. We will discuss the issues relating to eligibility, compensation, working conditions, and off-field behavior

Those unable to attend the live discussion:
Please read the live discussion and post your comments and respond to the hypothetical situations posted by the professor.

Lesson 4

____ Read Chapters 5-6, pp.443-662

WRITING ASSIGNMENT:

Do the following problems:

Problem 31, page 462;
Problem 33, page 478;
Problem 55, page 522; and
Problem 36, page 539

____ Attend Seminar – Agents and Coaches. We will discuss various issues relating to the duties, fees and regulation of agents; as well as the hiring and firing decisions of coaches; the coaches obligations to the players; and the scope of their employment.

Those unable to attend the live discussion:
Please read the live discussion and post your comments and respond to the hypothetical situations posted by the professor.

Lesson 5

___ Read Chapter 7, pp. 586-663.
___ For extra credit (25 points –watch the movie” The Replacements”, with Keanu Reeves)

WRITING ASSIGNMENT:

Brief the following cases:

1. CAPONE v. DONOVAN, pages 586-589;
2. KRUEGER v. SAN FRANCISCO FORTY NINERS, pages 601-610; and
3. CHUY v. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES FOOTBALL CLUB, pages 639-651;

____ Attend Seminar – We will discuss the Medical Malpractice; the duties of an emergency doctor on the field; and vicarious liability.

Those unable to attend the live discussion:
Please read the live discussion and post your comments and respond the hypothetical situations posted by the professor.

Lesson 6

____ Read Chapters 8-9, pages 663-744

____ WRITING ASSIGNMENT:

Do the following problems:

Problem 46, page 686;
Problem 47, page 698; and
Problem 50, page 734

____ Attend Seminar – Referees and Reports. We will discuss the laws relating to qualifications of referees, bad calls, hazards, game control, access of reporters and defamation vs. protected opinion of sports writers.

Those unable to attend the live discussion:
Please read the live discussion and post your comments and respond to the hypothetical situations posted by the professor.

Lesson 7

____ Read Chapter 10, page 776-833 and use this time to complete any other assignments you have not had time to complete.

____ WRITING ASSIGNMENT:

Do the following problems:

Problem 56, page 787;
Problem 58, page 795; and
Problem 60, page 810.


AFTER COMPLETING FOUR CLASSES, IT IS TIME TO COMPLETE THE MID-TERM EXAMINATION:

Mid Term Examination: Think Paper: Prepare a paper that is no less than 3 pages, double spaced on any topic covered in the material covered through the first of your four classes. Since this course is designed to allow the student to enter the class at any time, the first paper is due after completing four of the eight classes.

Preparation for Part I Examination

Study for the Mid-Term over Part I of SPORTS LAW.

Complete the examination over Part I of Sports Law and submit it to me at my Canyon College email address (bbeskanos@canyoncollege.edu). The examination will cover the lecture and material covered over the first half of the book, or the live discussions. Be sure to cover why you found the information interesting; what you found interesting about the topic; what you would change about the existing law (if applicable); etc. I am not interested in having the student regurgitate the law, but, more importantly, what you find interesting about the law.

Preparation for Part II Examination (Final Exam)

Study for the Final Examination over Part II of Sports Law.

Complete any reading you have not completed. Submit any assignments you have not previously completed. Take the week to “catch your breath”. Finally, submit the final exam “Think Paper” on the following topic of your choice.

CHOOSE ONE TOPIC:

Hypothetical Situation:

You have been contacted by the owner of the “Ohio Ostriches”, an NBA basketball team. The owner has created a line of clothing that he wishes to market; has a number of team members threatening to strike because the feathers on the backs of the uniforms itch; and a number of clothing stores threatening to sue, because they can’t keep the product on the shelves, they are such great sellers. The athletes are complaining of a serious rash from the feathers after sweating. The owner is concerned that the number of jerseys that have been sold will cause the same reaction if the wearers sweat in their uniform. What do you tell him to do?
Also, he has been approached by Idaho (the owner of the Potato Bug NBA team) who wants to purchase the Ostriches. Can one owner own more than one NBA team at a time? The owner does not want to sell, but wants to publicize the offer to get a new stadium in his town. Someone told him that it sounds a little like blackmail to say that if he does not get a new stadium, he will move his team. Can he make that threat even if he does not intend to carry out the sale?

OR

Think Paper:

You can write a think paper on any topic we discussed during the seminars, or, whatever was discussed in the second half of the book. The “think paper” should not be a regurgitation of the law, but a paper showing what you think about the topic; why you found it interesting enough to write on; what should be changed, if anything; what you liked about it; what you disliked, etc. Use the paper to show that you have an understanding of the material and applied the understanding in your paper.

Points System

Canyon College instructors use a numeric grading scale when evaluating quizzes, projects, exams, essays, and final grades:

A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D+ D DA F AU CC EC TC I R P S U W WF WP

4.0 3.7 3.3 3.0 2.7 2.3 2.0 1.7 1.3 1.0 1.0 0.0 Audit Clep Credit Experiential Credit Transfer Credit Incomplete Repeat Pass Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Withdraw Withdraw Failing Withdraw Passing