[1] The University of Central Florida (UCF) Knights football program promoted the social media accounts of their players in a unique way during its 2022 spring game in Orlando. The backs of the UCF football players’ jerseys featured something unique to the world of college sports but ever-present in our technology-driven lives: QR codes. Spring... Continue Reading →
De’Aaron Fox Swipes Money from Fans in an NFT “Rug Pull”
Photo via: Next NFT Drop Sacramento Kings’ star point guard, De’Aaron Fox, is facing backlash over seemingly defrauding fans over a failed NFT project, collecting $1.5 million in profit for himself I. Overview De’Aaron Fox, star point guard for the Sacramento Kings, is living up to his nickname, “Swipa the Fox,” a play on words... Continue Reading →
Rodeo Read Vol. 3
Photo Via: Slidebean.com A quick rundown of this past week in sports, entertainment, and law This past weekend, Machine Gun Kelly and the UFC both brought the world of sports and entertainment that much closer to “normalcy.” Admittedly, a sentence that I never thought I would type nor words you ever thought you would read.... Continue Reading →
Lawyers for Bill Murray and the Doobie Brothers Exchange Humorous Jabs Over Song Use
Photo Source: williammurraygolf.com Bill Murray has long been a fixture in the golf community, from his iconic roll as the eccentric greens keeper in the classic Caddie Shack to his always entertaining rounds at the celebrity pro-am tournaments. Recently he has entered the world of golf apparel, launching William Murray Golf in 2017. His company... Continue Reading →
The Rising Battle Between Music Artists and Record Labels
Photo Source: New York Daily News The fight between music artists and record labels continues as more celebrities, including Taylor Swift and Kanye West, use their platform to bring awareness to the issue within the industry. The issue being addressed is that record labels, not artists, generally own the master rights. We will discuss this... Continue Reading →
NIL Following COVID-19
A few months ago, state legislatures were hacking away at the foundations of NCAA “amateurism” by passing laws to allow students athletes to receive compensation for use of their name, image, and likeness. Celebrity athletes such as LeBron James, Draymond Green, and Richard Sherman praise the fall of the NCAA “amateurism” model and look forward... Continue Reading →
Just Do It: Michael Avenatti Guilty of Extorting Nike
It is unlikely anyone reading this does not know about Nike: a company that ranks among the top of the list of Fortune 500 companies that are the largest United States corporations by total revenue, Nike permeates every facet of athletics - from sportswear to advertising to equipment. In 2014, Nike was valued at $19... Continue Reading →
Sports Trademarks Gone Wrong: Tom Brady (Finally) Loses in His Attempt to Trademark “Tom Terrific”
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has refused Tom Brady’s attempt to trademark “Tom Terrific.” Here’s why Brady did it and why his approach failed. Here in Western New York, Tom Brady is called many unsavory names, some of which I can’t put in this post. One thing I can assure you is that “Tom... Continue Reading →
Sports Trademarks Gone Wrong: ‘The’ Ohio State University Seeks to Register Trademark for “The”
Will Ohio State succeed in obtaining a trademark in the most commonly used word in the English language? On August 8th, 2019, Ohio State University filed a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) for the grammatical article “THE.” Ohio State, which is officially designated by Ohio state law as “The Ohio... Continue Reading →
The Unique Law Governing Olympic Trademarks
While it is common for sports leagues and organizations to be protective of their trademarks, the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) has unique trademark rights over various Olympic-related trademarks that no other American organization has. The 2020 Summer Olympics will be held in Tokyo in just over a year from now. In preparation for the... Continue Reading →