Olshan advises sports figures, celebrities and their management teams by ensuring entertainment industry contracts, including advertising, endorsement, sponsorships and international pay-per-view deals, are properly executed and, when necessary, defended.
Protective Event Contracts
Olshan creates and negotiates an array of contracts for celebrities, fighters and other sports figures, and promoters, including option agreements, provision of service and promotional deals. We regularly represent clients in pay-per-view negotiations for appearances on leading broadcast and cable television networks, such as ESPN, HBO, DAZN and Showtime, and negotiate broadcast rights and licensing agreements with domestic and foreign television networks.
Our lawyers regularly address and resolve contractual disputes on behalf of a range of entertainment clients, including boxers, managers and sponsors. We litigate breach of contract and tortious interference disputes in court, resolve disputes through arbitration, and negotiate site fees and sponsorship agreements with casinos, hotels, resorts and other event hosts.
An Unrivaled Team
Our fast-growing practice is led by renowned commercial litigator and sports law lawyer Scott Shaffer, who repeatedly delivers knockout results and landmark victories for entertainment industry leaders and underdogs alike in advertising, direct marketing, class action, and sports and entertainment matters. He knows the fight rules and the laws that apply to sports contracts and sports marketing inside and out and brings unmatched experience, especially to combat sports and as legal counsel in several of the world’s biggest boxing matches. In 2023, Scott testified in a federal trial as an expert witness on behalf of a professional boxer and was instrumental in obtaining an award of $1.3 million for his client.
Leaders in Combat Sports Arena
While our practice started with a focus on the U.S. boxing scene, it has expanded globally, with events in Canada and Europe, and work on behalf of international fight promoters, such as Sauerland Event, DiBella Entertainment and Glory Kickboxing. Our clients have included boxing world champions Ricky Hatton, John Ruiz, Krzysztof Glowacki, Arthur Abraham, Kermit Cintron, Cory Spinks and others.
Our team has substantial experience representing promoters, fighters and other sports figures in disputes with sanctioning bodies – including local athletic commissions, or world championship sanctioning organizations like the International Boxing Federation (IBF), World Boxing Council (WBC), World Boxing Association (WBA) and World Boxing Organization (WBO). As such, we have a lengthy record of success enforcing event contract language covering an array of protective health and safety obligations that directly impact celebrities, sports figures, and their managers, trainers, promoters and staff – including violations of the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act.
Social Media
Our Advertising, Marketing & Promotions Practice lawyers advise on all aspects of social media including celebrity and influencer endorsements and sponsorships. We help clients develop and maintain increasingly sophisticated social media campaigns and promotions – an essential ingredient to effective branding efforts. Working with celebrities, sports clients, influencers and businesses, our team executes exciting, cutting-edge campaigns on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and other popular sites. We have also advised on the design and clearance rights for celebrity NFT offerings.
While social media channels offer many exciting opportunities, they are still governed by traditional commercial laws and compliance obligations, including those relating to advertising claims, trademark use and rights to use celebrity images.
As the way federal and state agencies regulate the growing number of platforms continues to evolve, our social media lawyers closely follow newly proposed regulatory measures to ensure client campaigns are in full compliance with ever-changing content laws. We also advise on consumer endorsements and how to avoid the many pitfalls that can accompany leveraging user-generated content for product and service testimonials.
- Successfully represented world champion boxer Ricky Hatton in a preliminary injunction hearing and subsequent litigation that sought to restrain him from defending his world title in an HBO-televised fight from Boston.
- Represented a major league baseball club in sweepstakes-related matters.
- Drafted a talent contract on behalf of social media superstar Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions.
- Represented a sports and media talent agency in separate fee disputes versus former NBA players Kris Humphries and Jason Terry.
- Handled legal work on behalf of boxing champion Krzysztof Glowacki that yielded the headline “NY Lawyer Lands KO for Boxer Client.”
- Sued and deposed renowned fashion designer Vera Wang on behalf of a sculptor whose copyrighted work was used without her permission, ultimately reaching an out-of-court settlement on the infringement claims.
- Filed a protest with the California Athletic Commission on behalf of social media superstar Logan Paul concerning the controversial ending to a boxing match versus fellow influencer KSI.
- Sued hip hop recording artist and songwriter Santigold (formerly known as Santogold) and producer Diplo on behalf of movie and soundtrack producer for illegal sampling and unfair competition. After settlement, the defendant changed her performing name to Santigold.
- Negotiated numerous contracts related to HBO, Showtime and ESPN televised world-championship boxing matches, including Showtime’s Super Six World Classic tournament.
