Sports & Entertainment

Overview

We understand that throughout a professional career, clients face a range of opportunities and challenges that require legal insight into personal and business matters. Our sports and entertainment attorneys offer practical advice and reliable legal services on issues such as contracts, intellectual property, representation by agents or managers, team negotiations, sponsorship deals, employment law, licensing arrangements, and more.

For individual clients, we provide comprehensive support with contracts, licensing agreements, trust and estate planning, asset protection, business startups, real estate investments, tax planning, immigration, intellectual property, and non-profit governance. Whether negotiating deals, safeguarding assets, or resolving disputes, we aim to protect our clients’ interests while enhancing their brands and maximizing their impact on their families and communities. From early career milestones to legacy planning, we help athletes, artists, and entertainers succeed at every stage.

Experience

We work with a wide range of clients in the sports and entertainment field, from personal representation of athletes, authors, entertainers, and other individuals, to assisting professional sports teams and other large entertainment-related organizations. Our sports law and entertainment law experience includes, but is not limited to:

Served as lead counsel for a credit union, advising on compliance and contract matters for a Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) marketing campaign involving collegiate and high school student-athletes.
Represented collegiate and high school athletes in navigating NIL agreements and opportunities.
Advised an insurance company as lead counsel in developing an innovative insurance product for the NIL space in collegiate sports.
Provided comprehensive legal counsel to a National Basketball Association (NBA) player on entity formation, corporate structuring, and investment strategies.
Led legal representation for a professional athlete management company on business formation, contracts, and corporate governance.
Represented an NBA player in prenuptial agreements, estate planning, non-profit organization formation, and real estate investments.
Served as lead counsel for a national entertainment and artist management company on corporate governance, intellectual property, and contract matters.
Assisted a hospitality client with liquor licensing, intellectual property protection, partnership agreements, lease negotiations, and employment compliance.
Served as lead counsel for a sports medicine facility, advising on real estate and contractual issues.
Represented a recording artist in the sale of their music catalog.
Assisted recording artists in reviewing Record Label Agreements, Management Agreements, Licensing Agreements, and Production Agreements.
Served as lead counsel for a multi-platinum recording artist in a Lanham Act claim involving False Endorsement and False Designation of Origin, as well as a right of publicity violation.
Represented the estate of a globally renowned music icon in state court litigation.
Defended a nightclub and concert venue against allegations of fraud and breach of contract.
Act as general legal advisor to three-time Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star infielder on several international business ventures, including corporate structuring and tax issues, commercial litigation, and immigration matters. Also formed a charitable foundation.
Assist a prominent, internationally-renowned musician’s estate on licensing arrangements and recording agreements.
Represent a former multiple Gold Glove award-winning catcher on a patent prosecution, media law issues and a family law issue.
Represent a former Cy Young Award winner by providing general corporate counsel on business ventures. Also assisted on trademark matters.
Assist a commercial photographer with licensing and various business agreements.
Represent multiple athletes from various nationalities on their estate planning.
Advise athletes on issues relating to residency for Minnesota state tax purposes.
Represent a professional motocross racer in agent relations, sponsor and merchandising agreements, and various business matters.
Represent advertisers, direct marketing and sales promotion agencies, designers, illustrators, photographers and other creative service businesses of all sizes throughout the country with regard to agency/client agreements, talent contracts and idea disclosure agreements.
Represent a professional basketball team with a trademark matter in relation to a player’s nickname.
Represent professional sports players in establishing international foundations to support educational and other charitable missions.
Representations related to review of advertising copy and drafting of sweepstakes rules and registrations, as well as competitive advertising disputes and litigation.
Represent professional hockey players in tax matters relating to IRS disclosures of non-U.S. financial assets and entities.
Represent artists, authors and publishers on non-compete, confidentiality and hold-harmless agreements as well as issues related to SAG/AFTRA.
Assist professional hockey players with analyzing the U.S. tax consequences of various international transactions, including loans and gifts to non-U.S. family members and investments in non-U.S. companies.
Represent video, film, television and multimedia production companies, producers, directors, writers and investment partnerships in areas including the analysis of entertainment projects and investment opportunities, business and project organization, copyright and trademark protection and licensing, analysis and negotiation filming, production and distribution agreements, sale and licensing of rights in stores, screenplays, photography and music, television programming and network commercial clearance agreements.
Represent heir of a nationally renowned musician on music copyright infringement claims against a record label.
Represented a well-known public figure whose voice was being used without authorization to endorse a cryptocurrency through the use of an artificial intelligence speech generator and publicly available samples of the client’s voice.
Drafted and negotiated production development agreement for documentary film about an iconic Minnesota institution.