Conduct Detrimental: THE Sports Law Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Sports Defamation (Bauer / Reed); Ben Simmons Grievance; & Freezing Cold Takes! Aug 18, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to Conduct Detrimental. Dan Lust is joined by Mike Lawson and John Nucci (@JNucci23) to break down this week's sports law news.

Lindsey Hill accused Trevor Bauer of sexual assault last year which resulted in Bauer being suspended for 2 years. (2:04) Hill was not granted a restraining order in LA Superior Court and the Judge even stated that her request was "materially misleading" in part. The LA District Attorney's office also declined to bring criminal charges. Bauer filed a defamation lawsuit against Hill claiming the accusations were all lies to destroy his reputation. Ms. Hill has now counterclaimed claiming sexual battery and battery. This counterclaim also adds more allegations that were not brought to light in the restraining order hearing.

Patrick Reed has brought a defamation lawsuit against Brandel Chamblee and Golf Channel for $750M. (14:55) Reed claims that there was a pattern of defamatory comments made by Chamblee and the Golf Channel that ultimately led to his "constructive termination" from the PGA Tour. Reed is now a part of the LIV Tour.

Ben Simmons has settled his grievance with the 76ers. (29:10) Simmons was seeking lost wages in the amount of $20M. The 76ers were claiming that he breached his contract and refused to play in any games, which was why they fined him. Simmons claimed that he could not participate because of a mental illness. The settlement amount is undisclosed, and time will tell when Simmons makes his debut for the Nets.

Dan and Steph speak with special guest Fred Segal, better known as Freezing Cold Takes (@OldTakesExposed) joins to discuss his new book Freezing Cold Takes: NFL: Football Media's Most Inaccurate Predictions - and the Fascinating Stories Behind Them. (36:48) You can find Fred's book here.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

LIV Players v. PGA Tour: Golf's Legal Epicenter with Jodi Balsam Aug 11, 2022

Show notes

Busy, busy week of sports law!! Dan Lust is joined by John Nucci (@JNucci23) to break down the latest.

New this week was a win for the PGA Tour in the case where LIV golfers sued them for violating antitrust law. (2:57) Three LIV Golfers (Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford, and Matt Jones) were also seeking a temporary restraining order to be allowed to compete in the PGA Tour's upcoming FedEx Cup Playoffs and get around the PGA suspensions. However, Judge Beth Freeman denied the TRO by ruling that the LIV golfers failed to show irreparable harm if the TRO was not granted. Judge Freeman also attacked the entirety of antitrust case by finding the LIV players had not established a likelihood of success on the merits. Read more about it here.

Jodi Balsam (@JodiBalsam) joins to further assist in breaking down the news surrounding the LIV players v. PGA antitrust lawsuit. (16:53) Jodi explains the ruling of Judge Freeman and her analysis of their TRO argument. Jodi also discusses the irreparable harm argument and how the court determined their LIV payment has already compensated the golfers for the harms they have suffered by being suspended from the PGA Tour. Jodi analyzes why she thinks this lawsuit is a strategic one for LIV to provide leverage over the PGA Tour. Also, the strict nature of the LIV contracts being used are similar to the contracts they are arguing against with the PGA Tour. Jodi predicts what the future of golf looks like.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

Deshaun Watson Appeal; MA Sports Betting w/ Senator Eric Lesser Aug 10, 2022

Show notes

Welcome to the corner of sports and the law, with your hosts Dan Wallach and Dan Lust. This week was a busy one, so sit back and enjoy.

The Dans start with the Deshaun Watson appeal. (3:15) The NFL has appealed the punishment decision by Judge Robinson. Commissioner Goodell decided to use a neutral party handle the appeal and selected Peter Harvey, who is the former New Jersey attorney general. However, Harvey has previously been an arbitrator for the league, was on the NFL advisory committee, and helped create the language of the personal conduct policy. The reasoning for Judge Robinson's decision and the number of games is the issue at hand. The Dans analyze the reasoning she may have used and what Harvey may use based on NFL's recommendations for punishment. Where will the punishment have to land so this case doesn't end up in federal court? 12 games? A full season? The Dans also break down what happens after the decision by Harvey, and which court does the federal appeal end up in as both parties race to the courthouse.

Another issue to break down is whether Watson has waived his right to a temporary restraining order (TRO) because he and the NFLPA failed to appeal the ruling by Judge Robinson. (35:30) Dan Wallach gives three reason why Watson won't get a TRO: 1) Waiver of irreparable harm; 2) the NFL appeal is for the modification and extension of the 6 games, not amending and restating; and 3) there is no argument that wipes out the entirety of the punishment.

Dan Wallach sits down with Massachusetts Senator Eric Lesser (@EricLesser) to discuss the Massachusetts sports gaming bill. (59:55) The Governor is expected to sign the bill into law. Senator Lesser discusses the movement towards kiosks as well, and that this is just the beginning for sports gambling in MA.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

NCAA Unions; LIV v. PGA; & F1 Legal Drama Aug 05, 2022

Show notes

Dan Lust is joined by Brendan Bell (@_bbell5) who is our college sports business reporter for Conduct Detrimental. Dan and Brendan bring you the jam-packed news from this week in the Sports Law world.

Penn State football has tried to create a union with the College Football Players Association (1:55) Joining the episode is Jason Stahl and Roxanne McCray who are the executive director and president of the College Football Players Association (CFBPA). (12:20) Jason and Roxanne discuss their backgrounds and experience with the CFBPA and the goals to create a membership based program for college athletes. Jason tells his story where he "snuck" into a quarterbacks meeting at Penn State. They also discuss the prior attempts of college athletes to unionize. Jason and Roxanne discuss their "strength in numbers" strategy and their goal to educate all student athletes. They also break down the connection with NIL. Read more about the CFBPA here.

Formula 1 is making news in the legal world. (43:30) We are joined by Zach Bryson (@ZacharySBryson) who is a 2L at Elon Law to discuss that Fernando Alonso has decided to changed teams from Alpine to Aston Martin. To replace Alonso, Alpine wanted to bring up a reserve driver in Oscar Piastri to join their team. However, Piastri sends out a tweet stating:

"I understand that, without my agreement, Alpine F1 have put out a press release late this afternoon that I am driving for them next year. This is wrong and I have not signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year."

Read Zach's full article here.

An antitrust lawsuit has been filed against the PGA Tour with Phil Mickelson at the forefront of the Plaintiffs with regard to the suspensions golfers received for choosing to play in the LIV golf tour. (59:45) John Nucci (@JNucci23) joins to help break down this lawsuit. They are claiming that the actions of the PGA Tour has caused them to lose money. However, the big name players like Phil and Bryson Dechambeau are making more money now with the LIV tour, so the question is where are the lost earnings. Phil's current suspension with the PGA Tour goes until 2024.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

The NFL: Judge Jury Executioner Aug 03, 2022

Show notes

Dan Lust is joined by Mike Lawson and our resident DA, Matt Tympanick (@TympanickLaw) to break down the latest in the Sports Law world.

Deshaun Watson's punishment has finally been decided (for now). (2:15) Judge Sue Robinson issued her ruling Monday August 1 at 830am and found the NFL met their burden that Watson violated the personal conduct policy. The punishment for Watson is 6 games. The NFL has until Thursday August 4 to file an appeal, as the NFLPA has issued a statement that they will not be filing an appeal. If the NFL appeals, it would be reviewed by Commissioner Roger Goodell to make a decision on increasing the punishment. At that point, the NFLPA could appeal to Federal Court. Watson has also settled three more civil cases, which leaves one remaining civil case.

Stephen Ross and the Dolphins were found to have violated the NFL anti-tampering policy with their impermissible communcations with Tom Brady and Sean Payton. (32:34) Stephen Ross and Bruce Beal (co-owner of Dolphins) participated in impermissible contact twice with Tom Brady, the first when he was with the Patriots in 2019-2020 and the second violation when he was with the Buccaneers in 2021, and impermissible contact once with Sean Payton in 2022 before he retired from the Saints. Ross is suspended for 6 weeks and suspended $1.5 million.

Dan Snyder testified before the Congressional House Oversight Committee virtually for 11 hours. (46:26) The deposition was conducted behind closed doors, and it does not appear that the testimony will be released.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

College Sports: Unions / Realignment / Transfers; Kyler's HW Clause; Bar Stories Jul 27, 2022

Show notes

Dan Lust is joined by Landis Barber (@LandisBarber) to help navigate this week's sports law news.

Kyler Murray signed a $230 million extension with the Arizona Cardinals, but it comes with an interesting addendum. (1:33) Murray's contract now includes a clause called the "independent study addendum" which requires Kyler to view game film for at least 4 hours per week during the season. If Kyler fails to comply with this clause then he can forfeit up to $100 million dollars. This also requires that Kyler must not be distracted by anything else, such as TV or videogmaes, while studying film. What do you think, is this a necessary clause?

The entire College world is being shaken up between the transfer rule, NIL, and conference realignment. (10:25) Now, the latest news is unionization proposals from Penn State. The College Football Players Association (CFBPA) has sent demands to Kevin Warren, commissioner of the Big Ten, which include a share of conference revenue from media rights.

Jeremy Evans (@JeremyMEvansESQ) joins to discuss the California College Sports world shake-up. (19:00) USC and UCLA will be leaving the PAC-12 to join the Big Ten starting in 2024, and this will make the Big Ten TV deals skyrocket with the coast to coast coverage of the conference. The other issue is can UC Regents force UCLA to share their profits with Cal. Does California Governor Gavin Newsom have the power to pull UCLA out of the deal because of their UC affiliation? The PAC-12 has no affiliation with the UC Regents, so Jeremy says no.

Jeremy also breaks down the Penn State union proposal. (33:05) Jeremy discusses the Northwestern attempt at this years ago and why he doesn't think this will come to fruition. The NIL era has empowered players to make money and turned College Sports into the wild, wild west, but it might have impacted the possibility of unions down the line.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

Doug Gottlieb Libel Lawsuit; People v. Bridges / Ruggs; Dan Snyder’s Yacht Jul 22, 2022

Show notes

Another busy busy week! This week Dan Lust and Mike Lawson are at the helm to help you navigate the bumpy waters that is Sports Law.

Our resident DA, Matt Tympanick (@TympanickLaw) joins to break down updates in the Henry Ruggs case and the evidentiary aspect of the Henry Ruggs case and whether or notthe blood alcohol test is admissible. (5:16) Matt also discusses the latest news regarding the three felony charges brought against Miles Bridges. (16:07)

A surprise special guest Dan Snyder Yacht Tracker (@DanSnydersYacht) joins us to discuss the twitter account they created to track Dan Snyder's yacht as he avoids the subpoena powers of Congress. (31:01)

Last but certainly not least, Josh Kusnick (@JoshuaKusnick) is back to break down the libel action filed by Casey Close against Doug Gottlieb. (40:45) Josh also gives us his perspective, as a former MLB agent, on the negotiations between the Nationals and Juan Soto, after Soto turned down $440 million over 15 years. (58:35)

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

Deep Dive: Deshaun Watson with Yahoo's Charles Robinson; Impending Dan Snyder Testimony Jul 20, 2022

Show notes

Welcome back to the intersection of sports and the law. Your hosts Dan Wallach and Dan Lust are here to keep you up to date on everything in the Sports Law world.

Dan Snyder has offered to testify before the House Oversight Committee virtually on July 28. (4:10) There has not yet been any subpoenas issued because Synder wants to appear voluntarily. Will Synder testify? Or will he try to run out the clock?

The Dans are joined by Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) who is a senior NFL reporter for Yahoo. (19:36) Charles discusses the looming Deshaun Watson punishment decision. Charles also breaks down the potential for Watson's case to end up in federal court.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

Deshaun Watson Legal Standard and Appellate Review, DOJ v. PGA Jul 13, 2022

Show notes

The Dans are back to give you all of the latest at the intersection of sports and the law.

Deshaun Watson briefs were due to Judge Robinson before she makes her decision. (2:46) We await to see when Judge Robinson's decision will come down, and then the potential appeals. The Dans give you a deep dive on what standard of review Judge Robinson may use. Read more on this here where Dan Wallach gives you an even more in depth look. The Dans also give their predictions on the amount the games that Watson may be suspended.

The PGA Tour is now under investigation by the Department of Justice. (43:45) Robert Alston (@JRobertAlston) joins to help break down the latest news surrounding the antitrust investigations based on how the PGA Tour handled the LIV golf league situation with their golfers. Keep an eye out for Robert's article on our website breaking down the players who faced suspensions and the players who renounced their membership with the PGA Tour.

This is the one year anniversary of our website. Thank you to all of our writers and we encourage any and all who want to write about the awesome intersection of sports and the law to reach out and write an article!

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

Tortious Interference with a Conference; Minor League Baseball Law; Miles Bridges; and Watson Watch Jul 08, 2022

Show notes

Dan Lust is joined by Landis Barber (@LandisBarber) to help break down the latest intersection of sports and the law.

The NCAA is going through some major conference realignment. (7:53) The latest rumor being a shake-up in the ACC where Clemson, North Carolina, Florida State and Virginia could be moving to the SEC, with rumors of ESPN trying to void their ACC TV deal.

Miles Bridges turned down a $60 million contract over four years with the Hornets. (16:41) Miles' wife posted on Instagram alleging domestic violence and other abuse with pictures. Miles was seeking a max deal with the Hornets but since these allegation have come out, there are some rumors that the Hornets are pulling their offer sheet.

Dan and Landis are joined again by Joshua Kusnick (@JoshuaKusnick) to discuss the news regarding MiLB attack on MLB antitrust exemption. (21:55) Advocates for Minor League Baseball have answered the bipartisan letter seeking information by the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. The response letter called on the Committee to expand the Curt Flood Act to apply to minior league baseball. They proposed the bill to be called the Minor League Curt Flood Act and that this would be another limited repeal of the 100-year-old MLB antitrust exemption. Minor league baseball players do not have a union and this is what they are seeking to improve labor or contraction problems they are currently experiencing.

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Have a topic you want to write about? ANYONE and EVERYONE can publish for ConductDetrimental.com. Let us know if you want to join the team.

Dan Wallach (@WallachLegal) | Dan Lust (@SportsLawLust) | Mike Lawson (@mike_sonof_law)

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