Jeff Fannell » Career

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.

Oct 12

by Jeff Fannell & Associates in Career, Events, News, Press Release, Schools, Sports, Sports Issues, Sports Law 0 comments tags: Advice, Career, College, jeff fannell, Sports, sports law, Students

Jeff Fannell to Lecture at Adelphi University

Thursday, October 12, 2017 – On Monday, October 16, Jeff Fannell will serve as a guest lecturer at Adelphi University, where he will speak on current developments in sports law. The lecture, coordinated by Professor Josh Liebman, will commence at 8:00 p.m. on the school’s campus in Garden City, NY. “I’m always excited to speak to students and young professionals about the sports industry,” said Jeff. “I’m particularly excited to speak to a class taught by Josh, whom I’ve known for over ten years. We met when I was lawyer at the MLBPA and he was a young intern. It’s gratifying to see how far he has come in his career, both as a professor and commercial litigator.” Monday’s lecture will cover issues relating to negotiating athlete contracts, grievance arbitration and collective bargaining. “We’ll discuss a little Ezekiel Elliott, a little Colin Kaepernick, recent NBA signings and other things,” said Jeff. “It should be fun.”

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, […]

Mar 07

by Lori Lord in Baseball, Career, MLB, Sports Business, Sports Law 0 comments tags: Baseball, Business, Leaders, MLB, MLB Diversity Business Summit, MLBPA

Jeff Fannell to Join All-Star Speaker Line Up at MLB Diversity Business Summit

PHOENIX, AZ- Tuesday March 8th, Jeff Fannell, President of Jeff Fannell & Associates, will be speaking at the MLB Diversity Business Summit, featuring some of the best talent the business has to offer. Jeff will speak on panel “The Laws of Baseball: The Complexity of the Legal Issues of the Game” in two separate sessions. The complexity of the game of baseball on the field of play is matched only by the complex legal issues surrounding the business of the game. Panelists will speak about a broad spectrum of topics ranging from labor issues (including collective bargaining and player arbitrations) to intellectual property issues (including the licensing and protection of trademarks and copyrights) to a whole host of topics that teams are faced with on a day-to-day basis (including complex contract negotiations and issues relating to facility management, marketing, security and customer satisfaction). The MLB Diversity Business Summit is the premier sports employment conference and supplier diversity trade fair. This two-day event allows job seekers and entrepreneurs the unique opportunity of meeting with MLB’s Clubs at both the Major League and Minor League levels as well as sponsorship partners. For more info on attendance and speakers visit: http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/official_info/mlb_official_info_diverse.jsp?content=summit […]

Dec 10

by Jeff Fannell in Career, Sports, Sports Business 0 comments tags: Advice, Career, Sports, Sports business, Sports Careers, Sports management

Get in the Game Part 5: Tips for Breaking into a Career in Sports

For nearly 15 years I have been blessed to work as a lawyer in professional sports. From 2000 through 2010, I was a labor attorney for the Major League Baseball Players Association. In November 2010, I started my own consulting practice where I continue to work in sports in various capacities. In addition to working on contract issues and other matters for some of the top agents and players in Major League Baseball, I have also assisted the National Hockey League Players’ Association in grievance arbitration and salary arbitration and have worked on a number of high profile sports-related projects. I count myself fortunate for all of the opportunities and experiences that have and continue to come my way. Now, I’d like to help you and others fulfill their dream of building a career in sports. In my fifth and final installment of this series we discuss Tip #5… Tip #5: Get Plugged In If you want to get into the sports industry make the rounds. Develop contacts by joining sports groups and associations. Attend panel discussions, awards ceremonies, trade shows and other events. In addition to paying attention to the scores and highlights, read the sports business pages. Look […]

Dec 04

by Jeff Fannell in Career, Sports, Sports Business 0 comments

Get in the game part 4: Tips for breaking into a career in sports

For nearly 15 years I have been blessed to work as a lawyer in professional sports. From 2000 through 2010, I was a labor attorney for the Major League Baseball Players Association. In November 2010, I started my own consulting practice where I continue to work in sports in various capacities. In addition to working on contract issues and other matters for some of the top agents and players in Major League Baseball, I have also assisted the National Hockey League Players’ Association in grievance arbitration and salary arbitration and have worked on a number of high profile sports-related projects. I count myself fortunate for all of the opportunities and experiences that have and continue to come my way. Now, I’d like to help you and others fulfill their dream of building a career in sports. See part four of my five part series below…. Tip #4: Pay Your Dues No matter how bright, talented, experienced or cute you are, if you want to work in sports, be prepared to work your way up the ladder, and be patient as you climb. Think about how interested you are in working in sports. Now think about the millions of other people who […]

Nov 26

by Jeff Fannell in Career, Sports, Sports Business 0 comments tags: Advice, Career, Sports, Sports business, Sports Careers, Sports management

Get in the Game Part 3: Tips for Breaking into a career in Sports

For nearly 15 years I have been blessed to work as a lawyer in professional sports. From 2000 through 2010, I was a labor attorney for the Major League Baseball Players Association. In November 2010, I started my own consulting practice where I continue to work in sports in various capacities. In addition to working on contract issues and other matters for some of the top agents and players in Major League Baseball, I have also assisted the National Hockey League Players’ Association in grievance arbitration and salary arbitration and have worked on a number of high profile sports-related projects. I count myself fortunate for all of the opportunities and experiences that have and continue to come my way. Now, I’d like to help you and others fulfill their dream of building a career in sports. See part three of my five part series below…. Tip #3: Develop Relevant Skills When applying for your dream job, make sure you bring the necessary skills and experiences to the table. If you can’t give away free lemonade on the hottest day of the year, then maybe that sales job is not for you. If writing is not your thing, then that public […]

Nov 18

by Jeff Fannell in Career, Sports, Sports Business 0 comments tags: Advice, Career, Get in the game, Sports, Sports business, Sports Careers, Sports management

Get in the Game Part 2: Tips for Breaking into a career in Sports

For nearly 15 years I have been blessed to work as a lawyer in professional sports. From 2000 through 2010, I was a labor attorney for the Major League Baseball Players Association. In November 2010, I started my own consulting practice where I continue to work in sports in various capacities. In addition to working on contract issues and other matters for some of the top agents and players in Major League Baseball, I have also assisted the National Hockey League Players’ Association in grievance arbitration and salary arbitration and have worked on a number of high profile sports-related projects. I count myself fortunate for all of the opportunities and experiences that have and continue to come my way. Now, I’d like to help you and others fulfill their dream of building a career in sports. See this week’s second installment of my five part series of tips to help you GET IN THE GAME! Tip #2: Be More Than A Fan Over the years, I have interviewed a number of students and young professionals desiring to enter the sports industry. As a lawyer working in professional sports, I cannot tell you how many times some eager applicant told me how much they […]

Nov 12

by Jeff Fannell in Career, Sports, Sports Business 0 comments tags: Advice, Breaking through, Career, Sports business, Sports Careers, Sports management

Get in the Game: Tips for Breaking into a Career in Sports

For nearly 15 years I have been blessed to work as a lawyer in professional sports. From 2000 through 2010, I was a labor attorney for the Major League Baseball Players Association. In November 2010, I started my own consulting practice where I continue to work in sports in various capacities. In addition to working on contract issues and other matters for some of the top agents and players in Major League Baseball, I have also assisted the National Hockey League Players’ Association in grievance arbitration and salary arbitration and have worked on a number of high profile sports-related projects. I count myself fortunate for all of the opportunities and experiences that have and continue to come my way. Now, I’d like to help you and others fulfill their dream of building a career in sports. What follows is the first installment of a five part series of a few tips that I believe will help you be more effective in finding the sports job of your dreams. Without question, working in the sports industry can be extremely exciting and rewarding. It also can be challenging and very competitive. With a little hard work, ingenuity and helpful guidance, you can break […]