Departments

Sports Law

The Firm’s sports law group handles a broad range of transactions and development projects for sports franchises and other clients involved in professional sports. Headed by Lonnie M. Ritzer, the sports law group at Shapiro Sher Guinot & Sandler serves clients connected with football, baseball, basketball, horseracing, auto racing, and golf. We aid business entities and individuals in acquiring sports franchises; financing, building, and developing all types of sports facilities and surrounding property; and commercializing and protecting sports-related brands and intellectual property. We also handle contract and endorsement planning for many well-known athletes. Our sports-industry clients benefit by working with a group of attorneys with years of experience in commercial real estate, tax, corporate, securities and intellectual property law related to the sports industry.

Attorneys

• Ann Clary Gordon
• William A. McComas
• Lonnie M. Ritzer
• Ronald M. Shapiro

Illustrative Transactions

• Assisting with the protection and disposition of athlete likeness, franchise brands, copyrights, trademarks, and other intangible assets for several high-profile sports figures, including Beatriz Recardi, a 2010 rookie on the LPGA tour, and a variety of entities founded by baseball legend Cal Ripken, Jr., and his family.
• Assisting with the financing, formation and development of Baltimore Racing Development, the entity tasked with bringing the Indy Racing League’s Grand Prix to Baltimore in 2011.
• Serving as regular outside counsel to Ripken Baseball Group, which owns three minor league baseball teams across the country and two youth sports facilities; work includes acquisitions, licensing, and general corporate matters.
• Handling the legal aspects of developing the Ripken Stadium Complex, in Aberdeen, Maryland, which consists of a 6,000-seat minor league stadium, a 3,500-seat youth stadium (a miniature replica of Camden Yards), a multi-field youth baseball academy, and a hotel.
• Handled the acquisition of the Bulle Rock Golf Course and its surrounding land, which is being developed for residential and commercial uses.
• Serving as outside general counsel to a tax-exempt organization that owns and operates sports facilities nationwide serving disadvantaged youth.
• Assisted in the development of Baltimore Ravens training facility in Owings Mills, Maryland.