Categories
Sports Law

DraftKings Is Bringing Daily Fantasy To eSports

These days, it’s nearly impossible to watch any sporting event or program without seeing an advertisement for daily fantasy sports. The fantasy and gaming industry has seen enormous growth, and that trend looks to continue as one of the leading DFS providers moves into the new realm of eSports. DraftKings announced that it will be […]

Categories
Copyright

Judge Rules ‘Happy Birthday’ Belongs To The People

For those in fear of violating Title 17 of the United States Code the next time they attend a friend’s birthday party, you are now in luck. This past Tuesday, United States District Judge George H. King ruled that Warner Music Group’s (“Warner/Chappell”) claim of copyright in the song “Happy Birthday” was legally ineffective, therefore […]

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Uncategorized

Wait, What Happened at the Solheim Cup?

Golf is a great sport. I’ve been promising myself that I’m going to get around to really learning how to play. And the excitement from this weekend may have given me the final nudge I need. As I did my routine check of the sports blogs I learned that there was a big brouhaha at […]

Categories
First Amendment Intellectual Property

What’s in a Name

Who’s excited about football being back in full swing? Me. As I watched with excitement during week 1 my eyes were particularly fixed on FedExField and the Washington Redskins. I’m a fan. I’ve been one since I can remember and, no matter how many times they let me down, I’ll probably be one until the […]

Categories
Trademarks

All Day I Dream About…Lawsuits? Adidas Sues Skechers Over Shoe Design

Adidas has been at the center of several intellectual property claims the past few years involving its famous three-stripe pattern allegedly being imitated by competing shoe companies. This time, the shoe giant isn’t just alleging that its logo was copied, but rather, an entire shoe design. Earlier this week, Adidas filed a complaint in the […]

Categories
Sports Law

What Attorney General Maura Healey’s Review Could Mean for Daily Fantasy Sports

It was recently announced that Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey will be reviewing the legality behind DraftKings – the Boston, Massachusetts based daily fantasy sports operator known as one of the leaders behind the ever-evolving daily fantasy sports industry. This review comes on the heels of United States Representative Frank Pallone requesting a committee hearing […]

Categories
Endorsement Deals Intellectual Property NCAA Violations

Reading Between the Lines of the Pac-12’s Concepts for Proposal

Roughly two months after United States District Judge Claudia Wilken approved a $60 million settlement that would compensate past collegiate players for the NCAA’s use of their name, image, and likeness in video games manufactured by Electronic Arts (EA Sports) from the years 2003 to 2014 – a decision currently being appealed by the NCAA […]

Categories
Intellectual Property Sports Law Trademarks

Are You Able To Trademark Your Name?

With the continued growth of athletes and celebrities as role models in addition to the continued importance of intellectual property in their lives, it raises the question of whether they can trademark their names. “Under §2(e)(f) of the Trademark Act, a mark that is primarily a surname [family name] is not registrable on the Principal […]

Categories
Sports Law

New Jersey Requests En Banc Hearing Of Sports Betting Decision

As expected, this past week the state of New Jersey – along with the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association – formally filed its request for the Third Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear arguments in the recently decided sports betting case.  This Gaming Law issue comes on the heels of the state’s 2-1 defeat in […]

Categories
Business

GVC Holdings Wins Bidding War To Purchase Bwin.party

In November 2014, Bwin.party announced it was in talks with several parties, which could result in an offer for the online gaming company. On September 4, 2015, Bwin agreed to a buyout offer from GVC Holdings for $1.7 billion. However, Bwin’s acceptance of GVC’s offer is subject to scrutiny as it withdrew an accepted an offer […]