2019 CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Friday, April 12th, 2019

Warren Room at Berkeley Law

welcome - *Lunch provided
12:30 PM

Reshaping Baseball’s Free Agency
1:00 PM - 1:50 PM

Major League Baseball's player union seriously considered filing a collusion case against the league last year as a result of the free agent market being historically cold. Quality, well-established players were receiving short-term, minimal offers, or no offers at all. This market highlighted a longstanding issue in Major League Baseball -- it takes six full years in the majors (in addition to time spent in the minors) to reach free agency. Thus, by the time players hit free agency for the first time, they are often past their prime. In the past, this led to players getting enormous contracts that seldom appropriately valued their anticipated future production. However, front offices have gotten smarter and are now more hesitant to give out large contracts to aging players when younger, comparable players are available at suppressed salaries. This panel will delve into the intricacies of free agency in the MLB, new risk-hedging devices available to players, and the opportunity for a potential reshaping in the immediate future.

• Moderator: Dixon Anderson ‘20

• Jeff Borris, BALLENGEE GROUP, General Counsel

• Scott Lonergan, BALLENGEE GROUP, MLBPA Certified Agent

• Charlie Olson, PANDO POOLING, CEO

wearable technology and player data
2:00 pM - 2:40 pM

Wearables present an exciting opportunity to learn more about professional athletes, generate information that can sharpen performance, create competitive advantages, and create new monetization opportunities. However, wearables also present significant new data security issues. Teams and leagues generate vast amounts of sensitive information about players. As a result, wearable devices themselves, as well as the companies that manufacture and sell them, are all targets for attack, creating new opportunities to access or inadvertently disclose that data. This panel will address the use of wearable technology, what kinds of data these devices collect, potential problems with collecting this information, and what sports organizations are already doing to protect athletes in this realm.

• Maggy Carlyle, PAC-12 NETWORKS, Counsel, Business & Legal Affairs

• David Foster, NATIONAL BASKETBALL PLAYERS ASSOCIATION, Deputy General Counsel

• Davyeon Ross, SHOT TRACKER, Founder

alston v. Ncaa: amateurism in college sports
2:50 pM - 3:20 PM.

It’s no secret that the NCAA operates a billion dollar industry. Schools, conferences, coaches, and television networks receive millions of dollars each year from the revenue generated from college sports. However, for years, the NCAA’s amateurism rules have consistently insulated college athletes from sharing a piece of the billion dollar pie. On March 8, 2019, Judge Wilken from the Federal District Court in Oakland, issued a decision that confronted the NCAA’s amateurism model and opens the door to more compensation for athletes. On this panel, the attorneys involved in the litigation of this case will discuss the legal background, why an antitrust challenge to the NCAA’s rules was appropriate, and the implications their victory could have for the future.

• Sean Meenan, WINSTON & STRAWN LLP, Partner

• Jeanifer Parsigian, WINSTON & STRAWN LLP, Associate

fireside chat with gloria nevarez
3:30 PM - 4:o0 PM

In March of 2018, the West Coast Conference President’s Council selected Gloria Nevarez to serve as the fourth full-time commissioner in the 66-year history of the Conference. She is the first Latina Commissioner in NCAA Division I Athletics. This conversation will delve into her first year as commissioner from her unique perspective, the challenges she’s encountered, the role she serves as an advocate and role model, and her future plans for the Conference.

• NCAA WEST COAST CONFERENCE, Commissioner, Berkeley Law Class of 1997

topics in entertainment law
4:10 PM - 5:00 PM  

Over the years the music industry has changed tremendously with the advent of streaming services, new revenue models, and shifting legal frameworks. As the Director of Business and Legal Affairs at EMPIRE, Joey Seiler is intimately involved with these cutting edge issues. Moreover, Gary Gilbert is a leader in the music industry who concentrates his practice in the area of music transactions and whose list of clients includes renowned performers like Jackson Brown, Death Cab for Cutie, and the Dixie Chicks to name a few. This panel will dive deep into the changing landscape of the music industry and the common legal issues industry leaders face today.

• Joey Seiler, EMPIRE, Director, Business and Legal Affairs

• Gary Gilbert, MANATT, PHELPS & PHILLIPS, LLP, Senior Partner

*Schedule subject to change