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November 20, 2018 The Modern Law Library

Sports lawyer shares how he turned a love for athletics into a career

By Ashley Alfirevic

“Show me the money!” After navigating the ups and downs of being an agent, Darren Heitner pursued another avenue that combined his love of negotiation and athletics: sports law. With his wealth of expertise and his deep knowledge of this niche practice area, Heitner packed his book—How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know—full of real-life case studies and insights into the inner working of the games people love to watch.

In this episode of the Modern Law Library, ABA Publishing’s Bryan Kay speaks to Heitner about the latest edition of his book, how to pursue a career in sports law and some of today’s hot topics in college and professional athletics.

From litigating contracts for up-and-coming stars to trademarking “ONIONS!” for a beloved college basketball commentator, Heitner has covered plenty of ground. At only 33 years old, he’s an expert at forecasting what’s next. Here, he discusses topics from the future of the adversarial relationship between the NCAA and college athletes, to the rise of professional video game players and the intellectual property rights of players’ tattoos.

Listeners can get a special discount on How to Play the Game through the ABA webstore. Tune in to learn more.

Listen to the Podcast

In This Podcast:

Ashley Alfirevic
Darren Adam Heitner is an attorney and founder of Heitner Legal. He has represented athletes, agents, entertainers, small businesses and large corporations. He has taught courses in sports agency management as an adjunct at Indiana University Bloomington, the University of Florida and the University of Florida Levin College of Law. He is a co-founder of Collegiate Sports Advisors (CSA), and the founder and chief editor of Sports Agent Blog. He is the author of How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, published by the American Bar Association.