Jeff Fannell » Jeff Fannell

May 16

by Jeff Fannell in Baseball, Basketball, Career, Hockey, Labor, Labor Issues, Marketing, Media, MLB, NBA, NCAA, Sports, Sports Issues, Uncategorized 0 comments

LEAGUES LOOKING TO CA$H IN ON NEW GAMBLING LAWS

Now that the United States Supreme Court has struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection ACT (PASPA), a federal law that (with a few exceptions) prohibited state-authorized sports gambling, several states are lining up to enact legislation that allows sports wagering within their borders. And why not? There is huge money in sports betting. Last year, Nevada raked in nearly $5 billion in sports wagering. States like New Jersey, New York and others all want a piece of the action. States are not alone in this regard. Sports leagues, many of which opposed efforts to get rid of PASPA, also have their hands out looking for a quick buck. Having sensed that they were losing the PASPA battle, the NBA, NFL, MLB and others came up with the ingenious idea that if the Court were to strike PASPA leagues could cash in on the new legal landscape by imposing “integrity fees” on those states that enact new gambling laws. What are integrity fees? Some say it’s a nice way of saying “extortion.” The leagues and governing bodies say integrity fees are necessary to maintain the integrity and public confidence in their respective sports. The rationale goes like this: once […]

Oct 20

by Jeff Fannell in Career, Labor, Media, People, Schools, Sports Business, Sports Law, Uncategorized 0 comments

St. John’s Law Got Talent

October 20, 2017 – The Fall 2017 St. John’s Law Alumni Magazine features a cover story on SJU alums working in the sports and entertainment industry, and includes comments from Jeff Fannell. You can read the full article here.

Jun 19

by Jeff Fannell in Uncategorized 0 comments tags: College, Scholarship, Sports business, sports law, student support

Scholarship Update

Back in January, I posted about my desire to create an academic scholarship as a way to express my gratitude for all of the help and the blessings I have received over the course of my studies and my career. Several people were kind enough to reach out to offer advice and guidance. Now, less than six months later, I am overjoyed to announce the creation of the Fannell Family Scholarship at my law school alma mater, St. John’s University School of Law in Queens, NY. Through a pledge of $50,000, combined with a dollar-for-dollar match from the Brennan Family Scholarship Matching Program once the pledge threshold is met, we will have a $100,000 endowed scholarship at St. John’s Law that will provide one or more partial scholarships each year to an African-American student with a demonstrated interest in labor and employment law. One of the beauties of the endowed scholarship is that once created, the capital is preserved, providing financial assistance to generations of students in perpetuity. I am thrilled at the opportunity, through the scholarship, to help others as others have helped me. My sincere thanks to Philip Maroney, Advancement Officer at St. John’s, for […]

May 03

by Jeff Fannell in Baseball, MLB, Sports Issues, What's Up With That? 0 comments tags: Adam Jones, Boston Fans, Boston Redsox, Jackie Robinson, Race

Standing with Adam Jones

On April 27, 2017, I had the privilege of attending the groundbreaking ceremony for the Jackie Robinson Museum in lower Manhattan. The museum, which will open in 2019, has been in the works for decades. In addition to housing baseball memorabilia, the museum will focus on Jackie’s life on and off the field, including his contributions to the civil rights movement. Among my personal highlights at the groundbreaking ceremony was the opportunity to meet Jackie’s widow, Rachel Robinson, who is known to some as the First Lady of Baseball. In addition, I had the opportunity to chat with noted civil rights attorney Norman Siegel, who shared how the Dodgers moving out of Brooklyn played a role in stoking his passion for justice and equality. According to Siegel, the Dodgers helped forged friendships between blacks and whites who shared a common interest in cheering their team on. When the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles, many of those bonds were broken, which ultimately led Siegel on a life-long crusade against any barriers that would tend to create racial divides. Thoughts of Jackie, Rachel and Norman returned to the fore as baseball ushered in its second month of the season with the story […]

Apr 13

by Jeff Fannell in Events, Labor, Labor Issues 0 comments tags: Conference, Global, Player Development, World Players Association

Recap: WPA Player Development Conference

Over 70 player development professionals and player association executives convened in Paris, France April 3-5 for the World Players Association Player Development Conference. The theme of the conference was #PeopleFirst – an acknowledgement that players are people first, and athletes second. Discussion focused on best practices to develop the full potential of players as professionals, people and citizens. Leaders from over two dozen countries, including the United States, Japan, France, Italy, Spain, Australia, Switzerland, England, Botswana, and Zimbabwe shared ideas and experiences in implementing player development programs. Such programs emphasize areas such as player health and safety, mental health and wellness, training and performance (including the use of wearable technology), career transition programs, personal branding, social awareness and involvement, and leadership development. In short, the conversation among conference participants embodied a holistic approach to developing players as people and athletes. On behalf of the MLBPA, I had the pleasure of taking part in a panel discussion with Don Davis, NFLPA Senior Director of Player Affairs and Development, and Stephen Webb, NHLPA Divisional Player Representative. How player development programs are pursued within the context of a collective bargaining agreement and independent of the league and its clubs was a central part […]

Mar 20

by Jeff Fannell in Career, Feature, Industry Spotlight, Sports Business, Sports Law 0 comments

INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT: Q&A WITH SPORTS LAWYER AND CONSULTANT RYAN LAKE

Ryan Lake, President, Beyond the Playbook Among my most enjoyable experiences over the years has been serving as an adjunct professor and mentor to law students and young professionals. It’s great to see former students and mentees begin and grow into their careers. And it’s even better when we can stay in touch and continue to foster a positive relationship. Ryan Lake, President of the sports consultancy firm, Beyond the Playbook, earned his LLM in International Sports Law Practice from St. John’s University School of Law in 2013. As a professor in the LLM program, I had the pleasure of having Ryan in my U.S. Sports Law class. Recently, I caught up with Ryan to find out how his career is progressing. JF: You completed the LLM program in 2013. What have you been up to since then? RL: First, I would like to thank you for being a mentor, your guidance has had a tremendous impact on my career. Since completing the LLM program, I’ve been able to explore a wide array of areas in the sports industry. Immediately following the LLM program, I worked with the U.S. Olympic Committee, where I worked on issues ranging from anti-doping, […]

Feb 17

by Jeff Fannell in Agents, Baseball, MLB, Sports Business 1 comments tags: Agent, Baseball, contract, MLB, Negotiation, Salary Arbitration

A Baseball Agent’s Dilemma

The first three weeks of February is salary arbitration season in Major League Baseball. A time when eligible players and their clubs try to hammer out contracts for the coming year. If those efforts fail, the matter is presented to a panel of labor arbitrators who will decide the issue after hearing arguments from the player, club, the union and the Commissioner’s Office. Clubs hold the historical edge in salary arbitration hearings. According to the MLBPA website, through 2012, arbitrators have ruled for clubs in 286 cases and for players in 214. This is generally reflective of labor arbitration, where employers win more than they lose. More than one cynic has suggested that such is way arbitrators ensure they continue to get cases. For the record, I’ll only say that I find this observation curiously fascinating. After I retire or move on from handling arbitration cases, chances are I may have other thoughts, but for now I simply remain fascinated. Another facet of baseball’s salary arbitration process that has captured my attention is the particular dilemma that agents face that affects the outcome of many negotiations. First, consider that the process is designed to foster settlements by creating risk – […]

Jan 30

by Jeff Fannell in Uncategorized 0 comments tags: College, Scholarship, Sports business, sports law, Students, Support

Looking to lend a hand

We all are products of our experiences and how we choose to navigate them. In my case, dropping out of college is one of several indelible marks on my soul. I was one of those “most likely to succeed” cats coming out of high school, so dropping out of college a few months later was an unexpected re-write. Remaining a college drop-out for the next eight years was humbling and sometimes disorienting, as I watched former high school classmates repeatedly lap me on the career track. When I got an opportunity to go back to college, thanks to the intervention of a dear family friend, I made the most of it and graduated with honors. When that same family friend encouraged me to apply to law school, I turned a deaf ear. With a wife and two children to care for, I needed to get out of the classroom and into the job market – or so I thought. After a year of rejections and disappointments, I bit the bullet, took the LSAT and applied to law school. By now, we had three children, so the family demands were increasing. I applied to only one law school – St. John’s Law in Queens, NY. It was the […]

Jan 20

by Jeff Fannell in NFL, Sports Issues, Technology 0 comments tags: Antonio Brown, Facebook, Mike Tomlin, New England Patriots, NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers, Steelers

It’s gotta be the views!

In a commercial spot for Nike in the late ‘80s, Spike Lee, in character as Mars Blackmon, wanted to know what made Michael Jordan so great. Mars wanted to know if it was Mike’s shorts, his socks, his shoes, or his haircut. Each time, Mike calmly replied, “No, Mars.” At the end of the commercial, Mars was not buying it, yelling, “It’s gotta be the shoes!” I was reminded of that commercial as I watched the video of Antonio Brown’s Facebook Live broadcast. Brown, the star wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers, decided it would be a good idea to live stream the Steelers’ locker-room celebration following their playoff victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. During the live recording, Brown captured some unflattering comments by Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin that were directed at the New England Patriots, the Steelers’ next playoff opponent. A lot has been made of Tomlin’s comments, but that’s not the real issue. The bigger issues center on Brown’s judgment and motivation. Let’s take the easy one first: Brown didn’t exercise poor judgment, he exercised no judgment. No way (I hope) was his live broadcast the result of any kind of deliberate consideration. The second issue […]

Jan 11

by Jeff Fannell in Uncategorized 0 comments tags: 2017, CBA, MLB, MLBPA, New Year, Reset

Back at it

It’s been a good minute since I’ve been in this space. From June through December, I was blessed to be actively involved with the Major League Baseball Players Association as they hammered out a new collective bargaining agreement with MLB. It was a challenging and rewarding time; the culmination of over two years of working as a consultant to the PA for what was a particularly challenging round of bargaining. By far, the best aspect of it all was agreeing to a deal that is fair and equitable for the players and the clubs. A close second was the opportunity to work closely with a terrific group of talented professionals at the MLBPA. It was truly rewarding to work alongside the Executive Director, Tony Clark, the brilliant attorneys in the legal department (many of whom are long-time colleagues and friends), and to interact with all of the great people on the PA’s staff who do so much behind the scenes to make life easier. Of course, by reaching a fair deal, we have the assurance of another five years of baseball without a work stoppage. That is certainly good news for the players and clubs, but also for fans, many […]