On Friday, October 25th, 2024, the Brooklyn Leisure and Sports activities Regulation Society (BESLS) hosted its fourth annual Brooklyn Regulation College Sports activities Regulation Symposium. This yr’s theme was “World Sport: Authorized Classes from the Olympic Video games” and consisted of three informative panel discussions. The day concluded with a keynote dialog that includes Professor Jodi Balsam and Worldwide Sport Arbitrator Jeffrey Benz.
Mr. Benz is a dual-qualified U.S. legal professional and English barrister. He’s a extremely esteemed ADR practitioner for Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Companies (JAMS) primarily based in London and Los Angeles. After efficiently managing a whole bunch of economic and sports-related disputes as a global sports activities arbitrator, Mr. Benz was acknowledged as “Lawyer of the 12 months” for arbitration in Los Angeles and has been named one of many Finest Attorneys in America in 2021, 2022, and 2023. At the moment, Mr. Benz serves as an arbitrator with the Courtroom of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) the place he handles worldwide sports activities disputes.
Keynote Dialog
The keynote dialog started with Mr. Benz’s recount of his unconventional path to sports activities regulation, a journey that began together with his former profession as a aggressive determine skater. He then spoke about how he labored as a maritime lawyer earlier than lastly transitioning to sports activities arbitration.
Mr. Benz’s sports activities arbitration profession took off when he was appointed a job on the U.S. Olympic Committee. Right here he dealt with mental property issues and authorized disputes that required speedy decision in the course of the Olympic Video games. Mr. Benz emphasised to the attendees that equity in each enterprise and regulation was key to his success, permitting him to construct clear and lasting relationships with high-profile athletes.
Later within the dialog, Professor Balsam requested Mr. Benz about how he grew to become an English barrister. He defined that together with his new place at the united statesOlympic Committee and newfound ambitions to handle worldwide sport disputes, Mr. Benz realized establishing himself globally would require practising past the USA. He determined to relocate from Los Angeles to London, the place he earned his English barrister qualification. This transfer established his popularity in international sports activities arbitration, leveraging his experience to entry high-stakes instances worldwide.
When it comes to present occasions, Mr. Benz spoke about a few of his notable instances involving main athletes. He touched on his work with a panel on French soccer star Paul Pogba who’s at present going through anti-doping breach allegations, a dispute relating to Simona Halep’s case in opposition to a drug producer for failing to reveal a uncommon kidney drug, and a controversial resolution involving Janik Sinner, which the Italian Tennis Affiliation (ITA) selected to not attraction.
Mr. Benz concluded with an insightful tackle the case of Jordan Chiles, an American gymnast who was concerned in a dispute in the course of the 2024 Paris Olympic Video games. Chiles’s coach filed an inquiry after the ground train last and argued that Chiles was not given the rating she deserved. The inquiry was profitable, and Chiles was given the bronze medal over Romania’s Ana Barbosu. The Romanian Gymnastics Federation later contested this inquiry, arguing that Chiles’s inquiry was submitted too late. The Courtroom of Arbitration for Sport agreed with the Romanian Gymnastics Federation, forcing Chiles to return her medal.
Sad with the result, USA Gymnastics appealed the choice to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, a courtroom that oversees and resolves worldwide arbitration appeals. Mr. Benz defined that though the Swiss Federal Tribunal would possible not vacate the choice, there was nonetheless room to deal with procedural equity points underneath the New York Conference. The New York Conference is a global treaty that gives a framework for recognizing and imposing worldwide arbitration agreements and awards, making certain that arbitration guidelines are adhered to throughout borders. Mr. Benz famous that this can be a highly effective software that ensures worldwide arbitration stays enforceable within the complicated panorama of world sports activities.
BESLS and everybody in attendance wish to thank Mr. Benz and Professor Balsam for such an incredible dialogue to conclude our Sports activities Regulation Symposium.
Article By: Farhan Sarker
Farhan is a 2026 J.D. Candidate at Brooklyn Regulation College
