I am a big proponent of internships and fellowship programs as they are wonderful avenues to learn about particular career choices, and in this particular case, the world of sports business.  Check out the details below regarding the Ivy Sports Symposium Fellowship Program. They are offering a spot for one eligible student to team up with the executive director of the Symposium in preparation for the 2012 event. If you are interested or know of someone interested in pursuing a career in this field, this is a great opportunity to consider and apply for the 2012 Ivy Sports Symposium. Deadline to submit application is May 25. Good luck!

Here’s some information about the Ivy Sports Symposium
The Ivy Sports Symposium is one of the global sports industry’s premier conferences that rotates being held among Ivy League institutions. The Symposium provides a forum for interaction and debate between college students and professionals, and enables the industry’s leaders and most successful executives to share invaluable knowledge with their peers and potential successors.

Fellowship Program
The Ivy Sports Symposium Fellowship Program was created in 2011 to provide talented graduate and undergraduate students with the unique opportunity to gain in-depth experience working on one of the industry’s most respected events and the organization surrounding it.

To apply for the Fellowship Program, please submit a cover letter and resume along with five (5) suggestions on how to further grow the Symposium. 

Application Timeline
• May 25, 2012: Deadline for application submissions.
• June 8, 2012: Fellows will be notified by email of their acceptance.

Eligibility Criteria
• Full-time undergraduate or graduate student at an accredited college or university
• Must be graduating no earlier than Spring 2013

Selection Criteria
• Quality of application
• Demonstration of interest in a future career of leadership in sports
• Preference is given to candidates with prior work/internship experience in the sports industry or related fields
• The Ivy Sports Symposium complies with all equal opportunity laws

Application Checklist
The full application must include:
• Cover letter
• Five (5) suggestions on how to further grow the Symposium (no more than 250 words total)
• Resume (PDF format preferred)

Details
• Unpaid fellowship program
• 12 months (early September 2012 through late August 2013, exact dates mutually agreed upon)
• Requires 10-15 hours per week working remotely
• Please direct all questions to fellowship@SportsSymposium.org

As the governing body for the sport of basketball worldwide, Federation Internationale de Basketball (“FIBA”) is responsible for the integrity of basketball at the international level.  FIBA is recognized by the International Olympic Committee as the sole competent authority in basketball.  In May 2007, FIBA created its own dispute resolution mechanism designed for quick and inexpensive resolution of disputes related to the sport and its participants, i.e. clubs, players and agents.  Originally, named the FIBA Arbitral Tribunal (“FAT”), FAT heard two cases in the inaugural year.  To emphasize that it operates independently of FIBA, FAT was renamed Basketball Arbitral Tribunal (“BAT”).  Within basketball, most disputes relate to unpaid wages and commissions.  Almost five years after creation, BAT has heard more than 200 cases.

The seat of BAT is located in Geneva, Switzerland.  The only means of coming before BAT is by voluntary agreement of the parties by means of a Standard Arbitration Clause in a disputed contract.  Interestingly, a handful of BAT disputes involved a player and club having signed two contracts for the same time period.  The first contract having the BAT standard arbitration clause and the subsequent excluding the arbitration provision and referencing domestic law as the means of dispute resolution.  In these cases, BAT frequently finds in favor of the BAT standard arbitration clause in the first contract and accepts jurisdiction to hear the dispute.

Disputes are “heard” by a single arbitrator with legal training and sports knowledge appointed by the BAT president.  A unique feature of BAT is that the arbitration procedure is conducted in writing and 99% of cases are handled entirely though an online system.  In-person hearings can be held upon request, though they rarely are.  A BAT arbitral award is delivered within six weeks of the arbitral proceedings.  The disputes before BAT are decided not on the basis of a national legal system but on the principle of ex aequo et bono, applying general considerations of justice and fairness without reference to any particular national or international law.

In the event that a BAT arbitration party fails to honor an award, sanctions can be imposed by FIBA.  A monetary fine of up to CHF 150,000 (USD $166,131) can be applied more than once to any party.  If the party is a player, FIBA can prevent the player from transferring to any other international teams.  If the party against whom the decision is rendered is an agent, FIBA can withdraw the agent’s license.  If the losing party is a club, FIBA can prohibit registration of new players and/or ban the club from participation in international competitions.  For a list of current BAT sanctions enforced by FIBA, please refer to the FIBA Sanctions webpage. (http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/expe/fat/p/openNodeIDs/19681/selNodeID/19681/sanctions.html)

This introduction is the first of a series exploring international basketball disputes.  Future posts will include how U.S. athletes are affected by the international basketball landscape as well as analysis of various BAT decisions.

Claire Zovko is a rising attorney with a passion for sports law, which stems from her love of sports in general.  Zovko is a member of the Sports Lawyers Association, Florida Bar Entertainment and Sports Law section, and the Miami-Dade Sports Commission.  She also serves on the advisory board to the University of Miami Entertainment and Sports Law Society.  Click ZOVKO BIO to read her more. 

There is another subgroup of athletes who were given a reprieve last October when the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled invalid, in USOC vs. IOC (CAS  2011/O/2422), the 2008 decree of the IOC executive board which stated that  “[a]ny person who has been sanctioned with a suspension of more than six months by any anti-doping organization for any violation of any anti-doping regulations may not participate, in any capacity, in the next edition of the Games of the Olympiad and of the Olympic Winter Games following the date of expiry of such suspension.”  Thus, for better or worse, all those athletes who purposely or inadvertently used performance enhancing drugs, were found guilty and completed a six month or longer suspension, may be eligible to compete in London this summer.  Of course, these athletes must “qualify” for their country’s Olympic Team by the means specified by the International Federation for the sport they compete in, and/or in accordance with eligibility standards of their NOC.

As the students in my University of Miami School of Law Olympic Games & the Law class have learned, NOC’s can have such broad discretion regarding which athletes are entered in the Olympic Games, that it is easy to see how CAS’ above-mentioned decision could be “frustrated” in actual implementation.  Stated simply, an NOC could comply with both USOC vs. IOC (CAS  2011/O/2422) and the CAS decision in Jongewaard vs. AOC  (CAS 2008/A/1605) by leaving an athlete with a completed doping suspension off the Olympic Team, on the basis of the exercise of discretion and to uphold the good reputation of the nation and its other Olympic athletes.  In the Jongewaard matter, an athlete who had properly qualified to be on the Australian Olympic Team was ruled by CAS to have no recourse when the President of Australia’s Olympic Committee removed him from the Team due to pending criminal charges related to drunken driving and leaving the scene of an accident.

As the summer of 2012 approaches, the courts and arbitration halls may begin to hum with the filings of complaints by athletes who believe they have been unjustly left off of Olympic rosters.  I will be monitoring the events leading up to and during the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, from both the USA and the UK.  For three weeks in July and early August 2012, I will be teaching my Olympic Games & the Law class on behalf of the University of Miami School of Law, at University College London.

 Jill Pilgrim is a co-founder of Precise Advisory Group and has built a national reputation as a prominent sports and entertainment lawyer. She serves as an adjunct professor for The Olympic Games & the Law course at the University of Miami School of Law, which she created for the Law School.

“We are excited to welcome Debra (Kushma) to our Group,” said Kevin Carty, Precise Advisory Group principal and comptroller.  “She brings a tremendous amount of expertise in finance, sports and management consulting, and further deepens and strengthens the resources we offer on our projects and for our clients.”

About Debra Kushma

Debra Kushma’s extensive career includes more than three decades in senior executive leadership positions with several of the world’s leading wealth management, financial services and management consulting firms, including Morgan Stanley & Co., and Coopers & Lybrand.  She is skilled in reviewing, establishing and implementing strategy and corporate management procedures in a myriad of business practices, including financial, acquisitions, human resources, corporate governance and client services.

Click KUSHMA to read her full biography.

Click KUSHMA JOINS PAG to download the PDF version of the release.

The course is designed to provide law students with an in depth understanding of the Olympic sports framework, the myriad of parties involved, as well as the legal and political issues that arise in this context.  The powers and authority of the International Olympic Committee vis-à-vis National Olympic Committees, International Federations, National Sports Federations and athletes are being explored and explained.  Legal issues related to managing Olympic sport organizations are being explored, as well as the influence on, and role of governments and politicians in, Olympic sport.

“With the Olympics just a few months away, I am thrilled to share my experiences in the Olympic sports world as well as sports law learning with the students,” said Pilgrim.

In addition to serving as a co-founder, principal and business counsel of Precise Advisory Group, Pilgrim is owner of Pilgrim & Associates Law Office in New York and North Miami.  She is a member of the American Bar Association, Sports Lawyers Association and Women in Sports & Events, and is a member and former Board member of the Association of Black Women Attorneys.

Note: Pilgrim has decades of experience in the Olympic sports world:  eight-and-a-half years as general counsel and director of business affairs for USA Track & Field (USATF), the national governing body for track and field; 10 years as a volunteer for USATF; and more than 15 years as an athlete.

As we structured our Gotomeetings™ webinar, using a technology application, we stumbled into a conversation about IOS5 and Evernote.

I had never used Evernote, and I abhor notes and lists. I typically use my brain and file stuff away; over the years I usually get most everything done, but recently I’ve become overwhelmed.   As an example, I recently read an article in The New York Times about the 10 best applications to use, and Evernote was featured. I YouTubed it, but did not remember doing so until I almost finished writing this article. The other members of our planning group sang the praises of Evernote, so I tried it.

So far it has proven very useful and has saved me time and energy in what I do and how I do it.  The key benefit, you ask?  At the outset I feel I’m a bit more organized, and if I lose my iPhone™ — which I’m prone to do — the application is connected to my Apple desktop. This is “cloud” technology at work, and a real-life example of an easy-to-access, budget-friendly piece of technology that can help with business efficiencies.

We will see if Evernote becomes part of what I do daily.  But one thing is for sure on my Tech Geek Index, I’ve gone up a notch and I’ve become more technology sticky towards my iPhone™.  Hmmm, I’ve learned a bit more about technology and I did something we are recommending to our business incubator group – PLAY. WITH. IT.