Thursday, April 1, 2021

NCAA Goes To The Supreme Court To Defend Amateurism

The U.S. Supreme Court in December agreed to hear the NCAA and major college athletics' conferences bids to overturn a Ninth Circuit ruling that struck down NCAA rules capping education-related benefits, teeing up a potential landmark case that could answer long-simmering questions about the NCAA's authority to enforce its system of amateurism.

The case comes amid a broader debate about the treatment of college athletes and their right to profit from the use of their names, images and likenesses.

Oral arguments were held on March 31 with the justices skeptical of the NCAA's arguments that courts should defer to NCAA rules seeking to maintain its "revered tradition of amateurism." I broke down all the issues in the long-running case in a series of recent Law360 articles below:

Podcast: "The Term" NCAA Struggles To Make Case Against Athlete Pay
Law360 (April 1, 2021, 9:18 PM EDT) -- The spirit of spring has the justices cleaning out their docket this week with decisions on Florida's oyster fisheries, Facebook's class action liability and long-lived media ownership limits. The Term breaks down all the action — including the NCAA's very bad day at the high court over its "amateurism" rules. Listen here...

Justices Skeptical NCAA Amateurism Deserves A Pass
Law360 (March 31, 2021, 11:00 PM EDT) -- The justices of the U.S. Supreme Court were skeptical during oral arguments Wednesday that NCAA rules meant to keep college players from being paid should get broad deference from courts, but also raised concerns about a potential flood of litigation challenging amateurism in college sports depending on the outcome of the closely watched antitrust case.

Top Court's NCAA Matchup: WilmerHale Vs. Winston & Strawn
Law360 (March 30, 2021, 5:32 PM EDT) -- Wednesday's U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments in a closely-watched antitrust case challenging NCAA amateurism rules will pit a prominent high court litigator against one of the most recognizable names in sports law, not to mention the acting solicitor general's first appearance in that role.

NCAA Amateurism Under Microscope In High Court Args
Law360 (March 26, 2021, 10:41 AM EDT) -- The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments Wednesday on what role courts should play in reviewing the NCAA's amateurism system, teeing up a potential landmark decision answering long-simmering questions about the organization's legal authority to narrowly define the rights of college athletes.

Century-Old MLB Antitrust Carveout Looms Over NCAA Case
Law360 (March 29, 2021, 7:28 PM EDT) -- The NCAA is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to keep judges from meddling in its amateur college sports system, but legal experts warn the case could result in a federal antitrust exemption similar to the high court's oft-maligned carveout given to Major League Baseball nearly a century ago.