Sports & Entertainment

Sports:

• Former offensive lineman for Ole Miss and the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens, Michael Oher, whose story was portrayed in the movie The Blind Side, has brought legal proceedings to end the co-conservatorship of Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy saying that he was misled for years by the Tuohy’s who had claimed to have legally adopted him but, instead, obtained legal conservatorship to control Oher’s legal matters to his detriment without legal benefits Oher would receive as being legally recognized as a part of the Tuohy family - Explaining the conservatorship that Michael Oher alleges Tuohys tricked him into - The Athletic
• The Ninth Circuit upheld a ruling that blocked implementation of Idaho’s ban on transgender women and girls participating in school sports that would have kept all transgender women and girls from participating in, or trying out for, public school female sports teams at every age, from primary school through college, and at every level of competition, from intramural to elite teams - Block on Idaho Transgender Sports Ban Upheld by 9th Cir. (1) (bloomberglaw.com)
• Soccer:
  • The NWSL is heading to arbitration with the NWSL players association over free agency later this month for the second time in two years. The league office is taking a similar position as it did last summer when it went to arbitration over the language in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) about player contract options - NWSL and NWSLPA going to arbitration over free agency again: Sources - The Athletic
  • The Chicago Red Stars of the NWSL and a group of business leaders led by Laura Ricketts, co-owner of MLB’s Chicago Cubs, have reached an agreement in principle to purchase the NWSL team - Laura Ricketts-led group reaches agreement to buy Chicago Red Stars: What it means for the club - The Athletic
  • The NWSL has fined the Kansas City Current over $55,000 for the use of a charter flight between Kansas City and Louisville in early July - NWSL fines Kansas City Current for taking charter flight in July - The Athletic
• Baseball:
  • Former MLB umpire Angel Hernandez struck out a second time in his racial bias suit, when the Second Circuit affirmed a lower court's summary judgment award that found Hernandez's failure to secure promotions and prime assignments was the result of subpar leadership and management skills - 2nd Circ. Says Lower Court Made Right Call In MLB Bias Suit - Law360
  • Former Mayor of Anaheim, Harry Sidhu, agreed to plead guilty to federal charges of obstruction of justice, wire fraud and two counts of making false statements to a federal agency related to his actions in a previously-voided deal to sell Angel Stadium - Former Anaheim mayor agrees to plead guilty to corruption charges related to Angel Stadium sale - The Athletic
  • Adding another entry to an already ample list of accusations facing Northwestern University's athletic program, three former employees with the school's baseball program filed a lawsuit in Illinois state court alleging they were fired for blowing the whistle on the abusive, toxic, dangerous and bullying behavior of now-fired coach Jim Foster - Baseball Retaliation Suit Deepens Northwestern Athletic Woes - Law360
• US sports betting revenue reached $2.3 billion in the second quarter of the 2023, setting a new quarterly record despite a slowdown in wagering compared with earlier this year. Revenue generated from online and land-based sportsbooks rose 56.6% year-over-year between April and June, according to a report from the American Gaming Association. The boost was attributed in part to the launch of sports betting in additional states, including Massachusetts, Kansas, and Ohio. Online sports betting was also launched in Maryland last November after months of delays - Sports Betting Growth Fuels Rise in Second-Quarter Tax Revenue (bloomberglaw.com)
• A Delaware judge approved two separate multi-million-dollar settlements to resolve investors’ claims over a 2021 merger that combined the billionaire James Dolan’s Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. with the company that broadcasts games for the NBA’s New York Knicks - Knicks’ $85 Million Broadcaster Merger Settlement Greenlit (2) (bloomberglaw.com)
• A former minor league hockey team in Illinois is suing the independent professional ice hockey league it was once a part of for breach of contract, alleging that the team was never returned a previously paid $200,000 affiliation fee after it ceased operations in February - Minor League Hockey Team Sues Over Contract Breach - Law360

Entertainment:

• Gaming:
  • The Brandr Group LLC, a brand management agency focused mostly on athletes’ name, image and likeness (NIL), has urged a federal judge to not toss its lawsuit against Electronic Arts (maker of the popular videogame NCAA Football), calling the video game publisher's motion to dismiss and stay discovery a "brazen attempt to steamroll" its contractual rights so EA can use student athletes' name, image and likeness without fairly compensating them - License Co. Blasts EA's 'Brazen' Video Game NIL Suit Tactics - Law360
  • Gamers are hoping to convince the Ninth Circuit to press pause on Microsoft's $68.7 billion deal with Activision Blizzard while they continue to challenge it in court by filing a fervent final written argument for why the acquisition is "striking and dangerous" - Gamers Ask 9th Circ. To Pause Microsoft-Activision Deal - Law360
• Film:
  • A California federal judge granted a joint bid by Netflix and a screenwriter to dismiss an intellectual property lawsuit alleging the video-streaming behemoth ripped off ideas from the writer's undeveloped screenplays in its hit science-fiction series "Stranger Things" - Netflix, Screenwriter End 'Stranger Things' Monster IP Fight - Law360
  • The Writers Guild of America West, which is currently striking against Hollywood Studios, released a report detailing how deregulation and mergers could soon leave Disney, Netflix and Amazon controlling what content is made and how consumers can watch it, saying the three companies are "positioning themselves to be the new gatekeepers of media" - Striking WGA Eyes Antitrust Probe Of Disney, Netflix, Amazon - Law360
  • Film financing company TSG Entertainment sued The Walt Disney Co. and the former Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. in Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming they have employed aggressive "Hollywood accounting" and self-dealing tactics to deprive TSG of hundreds of millions of dollars - Film Financier Claims 'Hollywood Accounting' By Disney - Law360
• Music:
  • Nonprofit royalty collector SoundExchange Inc. filed a lawsuit in Virginia federal court alleging that Sirius XM is "gaming the system" and manipulating regulations to avoid paying higher royalties to artists and copyright holders, and owes more than $150 million in unpaid royalties from the past several years - SiriusXM Owes Over $150M In Unpaid Royalties, Suit Says - Law360
  • A California federal jury largely cleared Smokey Robinson of claims he breached a contract with his former manager, rejecting the manager's bid for nearly $1 million in concert commissions while finding the Motown legend owes $2,000 on a record advance - Jury Says Smokey Robinson Owes $2K In $1M Contract Trial - Law360
• A California federal judge tossed a fan-fiction writer's $250 million copyright infringement lawsuit alleging Amazon Studios and J.R.R. Tolkien's heirs ripped off his sequels to "The Lord of the Rings," finding his books aren't copyright-protected because they were "lifted lock, stock and barrel" from the hit fantasy series - 'Lord Of The Rings' Fan Writer's $250M IP Suit Shall Not Pass - Law360
• YouTube star MrBeast has dropped his federal lawsuit accusing Virtual Dining Concepts of tarnishing his reputation by serving low-quality food in the two parties’ joint venture for the delivery-only MrBeast Burger restaurant in favor of refiling it in New York state court, where the virtual restaurant company has countersued him - MrBeast Moves Suit Over 'Inedible' Burgers To NY State Court - Law360