Cozen O’Connor

Overview

While many firms take a niche approach to sports practice, we have built a well-balanced group that provides a full range of litigation, corporate/transactional, intellectual property, labor and employment, and other services to our sports clients. And with offices throughout the United States, as well as in Canada and the U.K., Cozen O’Connor has the capability to represent industry clients from Los Angeles to London, and beyond.
Beyond our mastery of the legal and regulatory aspects of the sports industry, Cozen O’Connor brings an extensive network of relationships to every engagement — and a deep appreciation for the power of relationships in this sprawling, but highly connected industry. Many of our practitioners have been working on behalf of sports clients for decades, so we are often able to make introductions, foster partnerships, and identify opportunities for mutual benefit. Because of this work, Cozen O’Connor is exceptionally attuned to issues of reputation and zealously protects the public image of every client.

Our Clients § Leagues and other governing bodies
§ Major and minor league franchises
§ Club owners and ownership groups
§ Coaches and team executives
§ Professional and amateur athletes
§ Players associations
§ Agents and agencies
§ Venues and arena management companies
§ Corporate sponsors
§ Equipment manufacturers
§ Sports media content and technology providers

Select Experience

Litigation and Labor & Employment
We represent and counsel sports industry clients in all forms of complex commercial litigation, contract, antitrust, labor and employment, and intellectual property litigation and dispute resolution.

Corporate/Transactional/Regulatory
Our Corporate Practice provides counsel to industry clients across the full range of business, transactional, and regulatory matters, including leading mergers, acquisitions, and joint ventures, such as team acquisitions, and public and project finance deals; serving as bond counsel on stadium financings and otherwise counseling clients in real estate transactions and facility development; negotiating executive and plater contracts; advising clients on business development, media initiatives, and marketing strategies; counseling clients on regulations from tax, telecommunications and utility law, to navigating governmental relations issues; providing estate and tax planning services, and business, foundation and nonprofit formation services, as well as counseling on immigration law issues.

Intellectual Property
Our Intellectual Property Group represents sports actors across the industry’s broad spectrum of issues, from negotiating sponsorship, endorsement, merchandising, and licensing agreements, the sale or purchase of media rights, media catalogues, or name and likeness rights, to counseling clients on the rights of publicity and privacy, as well as trade secret, counterfeiting, and price discrimination issues, to leading trademark, copyright, and patent enforcement actions, and providing comprehensive portfolio management and counseling.