K&C Sports & Entertainment Law Weekly Roundup – April 2024 #2 | Kaufman & Canoles
Sports:
- A Florida law signed Thursday will allocate revenues from legal gambling in the state to wildlife conservation. Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed legislation that allocates 96 percent of state income from the Seminole Tribe Compact, the agreement with the state that allows the tribe to offer online sports betting and casino gambling, to improve water quality infrastructure and management. The law, Senate Bill 1638, appropriates a total of $200 million to land purchases and management for a protected wildlife corridor in the state and removal of invasive species. DeSantis signs bill putting tribal gambling revenues toward wildlife preservation – The Hill
- NFL helmet maker Riddell Inc., advised by Lowenstein Sandler LLP, will get a $400 million infusion from King & Spalding LLP-led private equity firm BC Partners Credit, in an effort to advance the company’s role in the game of football and put money in the pocket of current investors, the two announced Wednesday. NFL Helmet Maker Riddell Receives $400M PE Investment – Law360
- A federal court gave the green light to dismiss a class-action lawsuit against Nike last week. The athletic wear giant faced accusations over greenwashing in Missouri’s Eastern District Court, filed by lead plaintiff Maria Guadalupe Ellis in May 2023. The complaint alleged that the Beaverton, Ore.-based company had violated the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (MMPA) by deceiving consumers, misrepresenting products and more. Judge Dismisses Class Action Accusing Nike of Greenwashing – Sourcing Journal
NCAA
- Florida State University’s request to dismiss the Atlantic Coast Conference’s lawsuit was denied Thursday by a judge in North Carolina. The decision puts the focus now in Leon Circuit Civil court, where the first hearing between the pair in Florida is scheduled for Tuesday, April 9, at 9:30 a.m. in front of Circuit Judge John C. Cooper. FSU and the ACC are in a legal dispute over the league’s Grant of Rights, an agreement in which schools agree to transfer their media rights to their conference for a set period of time (2036 for ACC schools). FSU lawsuit vs. ACC suffers a setback in North Carolina court – Tallahassee Democrat
- A Cook County judge on Tuesday denied Northwestern University’s motion to dismiss former football coach Pat Fitzgerald’s $130 million lawsuit, in which he claims he was wrongly fired over the program’s hazing scandal. Judge Daniel Kubasiak ruled Fitzgerald has presented a strong enough case to proceed with a trial on his claims against Northwestern – including breach of contract, defamation, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Judge allows Pat Fitzgerald’s $130 million lawsuit against Northwestern to proceed – CBS Chicago
MLB
- The Oakland Athletics will play the 2025 to 2027 seasons in Sacramento’s 14,000-capacity minor-league ballpark while their planned stadium in Las Vegas is built, the franchise and Major League Baseball announced Thursday morning, officially making this season the team’s last in Oakland after 57 years. MLB’s Athletics To Play In Sacramento Before Move To Vegas – Law360
NFL
- A Florida federal judge threw out a suit from a former NFL player who said fraud made him miss out on the disability benefits he was owed, ruling he missed the deadline to challenge the decision that lowered his payments. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks granted a motion to dismiss from the Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan and its board in former defensive end Chidi Ahanotu’s Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit. Ex-NFL Player’s Disability Benefits Suit Tossed As Too Late – Law360
Entertainment:
MUSIC
- Madonna, Live Nation and the Barclays Center asked an NY federal judge to toss a lawsuit alleging fans were “lulled” into buying tickets for a show that started two hours late, saying no reasonable concertgoer — “and certainly no Madonna fan” — expects the headliner to begin at the ticketed time. Madonna Responds to Fan Lawsuit Over Late Concert Starts (billboard.com)
- Less than a year after playing their final show, members of ’70s rock band Kiss said that they’re selling off their IP to a private equity outfit owned by the guitarist of ABBA who is already promising investors that “plans for a biopic, an avatar show, and a Kiss-themed experience are already in the works.” Kiss sells catalog, brand name and IP. Gene Simmons assures fans it is a ‘collaboration’ – ABC News (go.com)
- The TX state court judge overseeing the multidistrict litigation created to handle Astroworld litigation said that Live Nation‘s CEO and president must sit for a deposition, writing that he has “personal and direct knowledge” of information that can’t be obtained elsewhere. Live Nation boss to sit for deposition in Astroworld litigation (completemusicupdate.com)
- Atlantic Records, Warner Music Group and Dallas Martin, the president of Asylum Records, are facing a civil suit in CA state court by a singer who alleges Martin raped, drugged and sexually assaulted her after she met with him under the guise of a job interview. Atlantic, Warner Music, Exec Sued Over Alleged 2017 Rape – Law360
FILM & TELEVISION
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
ART & FASHION
MEANWHILE, IN HOLLYWOOD…
- Sean “Diddy” Combs and his son, Christian Combs, were sued in CA state court by a woman alleging the younger Combs sexually assaulted her aboard a yacht while she was working as a stewardess, and that there is an audio recording of part of the incident. King Combs Accused of Sexual Assault on Yacht Chartered By Diddy (billboard.com)
- Oregon-based Good Clean Love Inc. sued Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop Inc. for trademark infringement over its good.clean.goop women’s health products, alleging that the rival’s branding is threatening Good Clean Love’s reputation and goodwill by sowing customer confusion. Gwyneth Paltrow-founded Goop hit with trademark lawsuit over its sexual health products | Fortune
- Rapper Ye (formerly known as Kanye West), his companies, and Donda Academy were hit with a discrimination suit in CA state court by a former employee who accuses Ye of threatening to cage students, spewing hateful rhetoric against Jewish people and the LGBTQ community, and treating Black employees far worse than white staffers. Kanye West Accused of Anti-Black Racism in Employee Lawsuit (variety.com)
- Walt Disney Co. shareholders re-elected the entertainment company’s 12 current board members at a shareholder meeting, rejecting all nominees pushed by activist investors Trian Fund Management and Blackwells Capital. Disney Fends Off Activist Investor for Second Time in 2 Years – The New York Times (nytimes.com)
- A Los Angeles comedian sued Pauly Shore and his West Hollywood comedy club in CA state court, seeking to hold the famous comedian liable for bouncers allegedly brutally attacking him outside the club after he left his debit card with a waitress and forgot to close his bar tab. Pauly Shore and His Comedy Club Sued for Assault and Battery by Comedian (people.com)
- Angelina Jolie has asked a CA state judge to force her estranged husband, Brad Pitt, to produce evidence of his alleged “history of physical abuse” in litigation over her sale of their French vineyard, while Pitt has filed his own evidentiary motion arguing Jolie’s defense argument is “pure pretext.” Jolie Seeks Abuse Evidence, Pitt Rips ‘Pure Pretext’ Defense – Law360
