Entertainment & Sports Law

New Twist in Baseball Steroids Case: Claimed Roger Clemens Blood Samples

Controversy over claims of widespread use of performance-enhancing steroids by Major League Baseball players has reached a new, TV-drama like, level. The development has commentators comparing the situation to an episode of television crime shows like CSI and Law & Order, and even Monica Lewinsky’s revelation, nearly a decade ago,…

Feb 7, 2008 4:40 PM CST

Vick Gets to Keep $20M Bonus

Overturning an October ruling by a special master, a federal judge ruled today that fallen football superstar Michael Vick can keep a $20 million bonus that the Atlanta Falcons had sought to recover from its former quarterback. Once Vick made the team’s 80-man roster, he earned the so-called roster bonus…

Feb 4, 2008 6:18 PM CST

Pediatric Group Releases Mercury-Autism Study, Condemns New Lawyer Drama

A pediatric journal has released details of a vaccine study earlier than usual to counter possible negative publicity from a new ABC television pilot set to air Thursday in which a lawyer argues that a flu vaccine caused a child’s autism. The study in the February issue of the journal…

Jan 31, 2008 12:15 AM CST

Ex-NFL Player Pleads in Steroids Case

Former pro football defensive lineman Dana Stubblefield pleaded guilty in federal court in California today to making false statements to a federal agent about performance-enhancing drugs. He is the first football player and only the second athlete (after sprinter Marion Jones) to be convicted in a criminal case related to…

Jan 18, 2008 8:49 PM CST

IAAF Ruling in Unusual Case: Amputee Can’t Run in Olympics

A man who had both his legs amputated below the knee when he was a small child can’t compete as a sprinter in the 2008 Olympics because the prosthetic limbs he uses give him a competitive advantage over the other runners. The International Association of Athletics Federations ruled today that…

Jan 14, 2008 10:51 PM CST

Marion Jones Gets 6 Months; Disgraced Olympian Lied About Steroids Use

Former Olympic champion Marion Jones was sentenced today in federal court in New York to six months in jail for lying in two separate grand jury investigations about her use of the performance-enhancing steroids she now admits she took and her participation in a check-cashing scam run by a fellow…

Jan 11, 2008 5:51 PM CST

Folsom Prison Cancels Johnny Cash Tribute Concert

A 40-year anniversary tribute to the Jan. 13, 1968 concert that made both Johnny Cash and Folsom State Prison in California famous has been canceled. The event was to have taken place Sunday in the same prison cafeteria as his 2 million-selling Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison live album, and…

Jan 9, 2008 8:00 PM CST

Jury Swats Ex-Prosecutor Seeking ‘Sopranos’ Consulting Fees

A former prosecutor and judge who contended he is owed consulting fees for assisting the producer of the Sopranos television show has lost his lawsuit. A jury ruled against Robert Baer yesterday after deliberating about 80 minutes, “slightly longer than a Sopranos episode,” notes the New York Post. Baer says…

Dec 20, 2007 2:33 PM CST

Julia Roberts Character Doesn’t Cuss So Much, Thanks to Houston Lawyer

Houston lawyer Dick DeGuerin had a hand in making some script changes in the movie Charlie Wilson’s War—and was a guest at the premiere. The movie (video), which opens in theaters Dec. 21, is based on the true story of a Texas congressman who helped secure funds for the mujahedeen…

Dec 18, 2007 7:07 PM CST

After Mitchell Report, Shame, Blame ... and Reform?

George Mitchell called it as he saw it and named 88 names yesterday in a long-anticipated landmark report about the use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball. Now the question is, what are those in charge of the game going to do about it? Surely, no…

Dec 14, 2007 7:13 PM CST

Mitchell: MLB Steroid Use Rampant

Updated: In a press conference this afternoon that culminates a 20-month investigation, George Mitchell has reportedly described steroid use as rampant among Major League Baseball players, described the league as slow to respond to the problem and, in a written report, named players who may have been involved in steroid…

Dec 13, 2007 7:15 PM CST

Big Baseball Names Named in Steroids Report, Better Drug-Testing Sought

Updated: Although baseball fans are still awaiting official word of what George Mitchell says in the report to be released this afternoon concerning steroids use in Major League Baseball, word has leaked of some of the high-profile players allegedly on the list of at least 50 who have used steroids…

Dec 13, 2007 5:37 PM CST

Former Judge v. ‘Sopranos’ Creator

A former prosecutor and judge is squaring off in federal court with the creator of the Sopranos television series, contending that he is entitled to compensation for coming up with the idea of the show. Jury selection was to begin today in Trenton, N.J., in the culmination of a five-year…

Dec 12, 2007 9:08 PM CST

MLB Steroids Scandal: 50 Named in Mitchell Report

Updated: A much-awaited report on steroid use in Major League Baseball will be released tomorrow, and it reportedly will identify at least 50 current and former players who may have cheated on the game with steroids, stimulants and human growth hormone. Apparently, former Sen. George Mitchell, a former federal prosecutor…

Dec 12, 2007 6:16 PM CST

Isiah Thomas Settles Sex-Harass Suit

A settlement in an undisclosed amount was reached today by Madison Square Garden and New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas with a former female team executive in a sexual harassment and retaliation case. One apparent impetus for the pact: additional compensatory damages beyond the $11.6 million in punitives previously awarded…

Dec 11, 2007 12:06 AM CST