名称，图像和相似:发生了什么?

你们可能还记得, roughly two years ago we witnessed an increase in the discussion surrounding “Name, Image, 和相似”(“零”)在大学体育. 催化剂来自具有里程碑意义的美国.S. 最高法院案例 NCAA v. Alston and the subsequent adjustments the NCAA made to its NIL and amateurism policies in response. Shortly thereafter, Virginia entered the discussions by passing its own NIL law for the Commonwealth. For a detailed discussion regarding these key moments, check out my colleague’s article here. Virginia’s NIL law appears to be a permanent fixture within our legal landscape, 至少在可预见的未来是这样. Therefore, it is worth getting up to speed on some updates involving the NIL as it relates to athletes, 尤其是在弗吉尼亚.

NCAA到底发生了什么?

The symbiotic relationship between the NCAA and the states is quite intriguing. 当NCAA在2021年实施这项政策时, it lifted its ban on NIL compensation of student-athletes. 这样做的时候, it effectively left to the states and higher education institutions the ability to set forth rules in lieu of federal legislation to govern.  NCAA在这方面的顺从却没有, however, eliminate its right to maintain its own guidelines and regulatory power for its member-institutions. Several states have passed their own NIL laws and some appear to conflict with current NCAA guidelines.[1] This begs the question: which rule should student-athletes and higher education institutions follow?

为了解决这个问题, 今年早些时候，NCAA制定了一份备忘录, 告诫说，在冲突的情况下, “学校必须遵守NCAA的法规.”[2] 以公平的名义, the NCAA further stated that those institutions that oppose a particular rule should utilize “the NCAA governance process to change the rule.”[3] Moreover, “[u]nless and until the membership changes a particular rule, 所有的学校, 作为自愿会员的一部分, 都必须遵守.”[4] 

这份备忘录并不一定能解决未来所有的问题. 例如, the state of Texas purportedly instituted a law that not only has some conflicting provisions with the NCAA, but it also “includes a provision that says the NCAA and its conferences are prohibited from punishing any school that takes advantage of these new types of NIL activities.”[5] 据说, if a Texas school is sanctioned by the NCAA for following a conflicting state law provision, the school is allowed to institute legal proceedings against the NCAA.[6] I’m sure that this threat of litigation will spur the NCAA to push for congressional legislation to establish a standard. 与此同时, the NCAA appears to be putting together proposals for guidelines to vote on this upcoming January.[7] As we continue to navigate this new terrain, a plethora of questions still remain. 国会会制定标准化的零排放法律吗? Will we see an influx of litigation against the NCAA by its member-institutions?

维吉尼亚州到底发生了什么?

转向弗吉尼亚, one significant update to note is the ability of high school athletes within the Commonwealth to profit from their NIL.  一度, it seemed as if this ability would have been a mere dream, due to proposed legislation within the General Assembly seeking to prohibit it. However, 州长扬金在2022年4月否决了该法案, which ultimately paved the way for the Virginia High School League (“VHSL”) to implement state-wide policies. [8] 你可能会问, why did the VHSL need to implement policies when Virginia already enacted NIL laws? 简单地说，法典第23条.1-408.1, 弗吉尼亚州的零排放法在哪, is currently limited to collegiate sports; thus, 留下一个洞让VHSL填充.

值得注意的是，VHSL的政策反映了法典§23.1-408.在几个方面. However, one difference worth noting is the respective notice provisions. 大学生运动员, “[p]rior to executing an agreement concerning the use of his name, image, 或相似, a student-athlete shall disclose such agreement to the institution at which he is enrolled in a manner designated by the institution.法典第23条.1-408.1(G). This enables institutions to discover whether a student-athlete’s potential agreement will conflict with an agreement held by the institution. Whereas high school student athletes must notify the appropriate officers within their school within 72 hours upon entering into their NIL agreement.[9] 似乎不需要事先通知.

正如你所看到的, we are still in the infancy stages of this area of law and there are still more questions than answers at this point. That said, it should be interesting navigating this new realm of NIL within Virginia collegiate and high school sports. 与此同时, student-athletes and parents alike should do their due diligence on remaining current with the applicable laws and policies surrounding the NIL.

Diamond Royster 是一个Pender & 科沃德律师专注于民事诉讼, local government waterfront law and landlord/tenant matters.

[1] New NCAA rules conflict with some state laws over NIL deals - ESPN

[2] mc97gsxn49y6wmpf4p2n764zq7z1.pub.sfmc-content.com/2ezhy1105pc

[3] Id.

[4] Id.

[5] New NCAA rules conflict with some state laws over NIL deals - ESPN

[6] Id.

[7] NCAA group votes on name, image and likeness rules changes (usatoday.com)

[8] VA HB1298 | 2022 |例会|立法机构; VHSL approves NIL guidance for high school athletes | wusa9.com

[9]表单- VHSL