6

w School Addresses Crisis in Sports Representation Prof Frank Remington Ed Garvey

The University of Law School, in conjunction with Sports Seminars, Inc. will host the first national Institute for the Representation of Athletes (IFRA) from August 11-17 in Madison. The Institute is the culmination of a three-year joint effort by Ed Garvey and Frank Remington to address the crisis in sports representation. Garvey, a lecturer in sports law at the Law School, is the former Executive Director of the Players Association, as well as a past Deputy Attorney General for the State of Wisconsin. Remington, Jackson Professor of Law, is the immedi- ate past chair of the NCAA Infractions fied to participate in subsequent ele- and Assistant Attorney General for the Committee and a former faculty repre- ments of the program. State of Minnesota spoke to the athletes sentative to the Big Ten Conference. "Our plan is simple," says Frank on NCAA regulations, professional The primary goal of the Institute is to Remington. "We have developed a three- sports, and the process of selecting an train a pool of competent professionals phase program which involves the major agent. who will provide qualified, ethical, and actors in sports representation: prospec- Statistics reveal that the odds against reasonably priced representation to ath- tive agents, student athletes, and officials a professional sports career are over- letes. The Institute will address the from intercollegiate athletics. whelming-even for outstanding ath- increasingly prevalent problem of "First," Remington continues, "the letes-yet surveys indicate that the major- unscrupulous, incompetent representa- Institute will focus on training a group ity of student athletes still believe it is tion, a problem exemplified by the stories of ethically aware, qualified representa- attainable. "The seminar program is valu- eminating from the federal trial of sports tives. Participants will receive instruction able to them, even if a pro career is not agents Norby Walters and Lloyd Bloom in the law and economics of sports, the in their future, because they learn how on racketeering and fraud in Chicago. regulation of intercollegiate athletics, the to effectively choose a professional repre- The University of Wisconsin Law role of the contract representative, and a sentative, "maintains Coach Morton. School has supported the planning of the practicum in contract negotiation. The "The program will not work without Institute program with a $10,000 grant last two days of the Institute will be the cooperation of coaches like Don Mor- from the Bruce Thomas Legal Ethics targeted at collegiate athletic officials, to ton," Garvey adds. "We must reach and Fund. "Because so many sports represen- familiarize them with the techniques to educate the athlete before he retains his tatives are attorneys, the problems in the be used in securing responsible represen- first representative. With the average sports world ultimately impact upon pro- tation and to create a campus resource professional career approximately four fessional ethics," says Frank Remington. for the athletes to consult. Second, years, the first contract they sign might "The grant is both logical and timely." through a series of on-campus seminars, very well be their last." The focus of the Institute may be we will educate the student athlete in the "We are confident we have created summarized in three words: prevention realities of entering professional sports a comprehensive program which will through education. Through a dual and selecting a sports representative. directly address the recurring scandals in emphasis on training a corps of compe- Third, we will develop a 'day-on-campus' sports representation," Garvey empha- tent sports representatives and educating program, to facilitate an open forum sizes. "The faculty of the Institute will be the student athletes, the Institute will through which the student athlete may comprised of experts from professional seek to eliminate the sports agency prob- meet and interview prospective agents." sports, intercollegiate athletics, sports lem at its source, thus preventing the ath- The second phase of the comprehen- representation, economics, and labor law. letes and academic institutions from suf- sive program-the student athlete semi- The curriculum will provide the partici- fering future harm. nar-was successfully tested through a pant with the information and skills nec- Those who attend the Institute in presentation to the Wisconsin football essary to successfully represent athletes. August will face an intensive four day team in April, 1988. Through the cooper- Finally, we will promote the creation of presentation of the material relevant to ation of coach Don Morton and the UW an open atmosphere in which a student the prospective sports representative. At Athletic Department, Garvey, Remington, athlete may select his representative." the end of the four days, an examination Clarence Underwood, Deputy Commis- "All we need to make this work," con- will be administered; only those who suc- sioner of the Big Ten, and Alan Page, cludes Garvey, "is enough people with cessfully complete the exam will be certi- member of the pro football Hall of Fame the desire and commitment to become qualified, ethical sports representatives."