Sports law is a specialty that many colleges are starting to offer. This area is one of the most eclectic and interesting fields in all of law. Sports encompasses corporate style law, labor law and intellectual property concerns. People who work in sports law may be employed by leagues, teams or individual athletes, as agents. They may also work with venues like stadiums and arenas. People who want to work in sports law should pursue courses about trademarks, copyright, contract law and labor law in their degree programs. Sports law programs are often closely linked to entertainment law.
One of the most unique sports law programs in the US can be found at Vermont Law School. This school has long been known for its environmental law program. One of the things this program does is explore the links between the sports world and the environment. Key courses for this degree program include Title IX, antitrust law and labor law. This school has a great student to teacher ratio, at 4:1. This means there’s plenty of individualized attention. There is a big emphasis at Vermont on using sports law to make the world a better place.
A more traditional sports law program can be found at Suffolk University in Boston. Coursework for this program includes classes focused on gaming, entertainment law, licensing and intellectual property law. Students at Suffolk have been known to score internships with local professional teams including the Boston Red Sox. Panels and other events produced by the Sports and Entertainment Law Association are available to students here, too. Suffolk University also has a fairly low student to teacher ratio, at 13:1.
On the West Coast, Malibu’s Pepperdine University offers a Certificate in Entertainment, Media, and Sports Law. Students are able to complete this program concurrently with their JD. This program is regarded as one of the best in the country at what it does. Cornerstones of this program include courses in media and the law, dispute resolution and copyright law. Pepperdine focuses on practical learning, and students in this program have plenty of opportunities for mentoring and externships. The student to teacher ratio at Pepperdine is 10:1. Students have plenty of opportunities to interact with their professors.