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Based in New York City, attorney Steven C. Beer is a partner with Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP. Steven C. Beer is the national chair of the firm’s Entertainment, Media, and Sports practice.
A new legal term in college sports is “NIL,” which stands for name, image, and likeness. NIL refers to a person’s ability to monetize themselves and their personal brand. Before the summer of 2021, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) forbade college athletes from earning money through endorsements, advertisements, or other commercial activities. The NCAA’s rules were based on the concept of amateurism, which states student athletes should be performing “for the love of the game.” Athletes were limited to only making money from their scholarships and stipends through each college or university. The NCAA’s policy change came after a court battle before the U.S. Supreme Court. Student athletes are still not allowed to be paid a salary by universities, and they cannot receive additional benefits based on their performance. However, they are now allowed to sign deals with a multitude of advertising companies and other businesses, and many are now endorsed by shoe brands, car dealerships, and through paid social media advertisements.
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An alumnus of Washington University, Steven C. Beer is a New York attorney who concentrates his legal practice on entertainment law. Since 2021, he has served as a partner at Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, LLP. Steven C. Beer’s areas of concentration include producers’ representation, contract negotiating, and sports law.
Name, image, and likeness deal or NIL (as many people call it) is a type of contract that spawned from a ruling against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in 2021 and is a significant revolution in college sports entirely. NIL allows student-athletes to receive education-related payments for their talents. This means a student-athlete can receive compensation based on fame and likeness among fans. They can get paid for signing endorsement deals, social media posts, or other actions. NIL awards student-athletes who aren't professionals with monetary incentives for their hard work. Before the NCAA v. Alston ruling in 2021, the NCAA used to pivot around stringent restrictions on athletes' compensation. Under these past NCAA rules, student-athletes played for their schools but were not entitled to any proceeds for their efforts. Rather than compensating student-athletes for their hard work, their schools receive all the benefits. For example, schools were allowed to sell jerseys of student-athletes without paying a dime to those athletes. This continued until July of 2021 in the NCAA v. Alston case when the NCAA lost to its opponent based on a unanimous vote. The Supreme Court nullified some of the NCAA's restrictions, which are no longer valid in consequence. |
AuthorAn experienced entertainment attorney, Steven Beer currently serves as a partner Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP. Archives
November 2022
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