On March 21 and 22, 2025, Brooklyn Law School hosted sixteen teams from across the country to compete in the Second Annual Athlete Endorsement Negotiation Competition. The Brooklyn Law School Alternative Dispute Resolution Honor Society (“ADRHS”) and Brooklyn Entertainment and Sports Law Society (“BESLS”) organized the event, which began last year “to provide law students from across the country the opportunity to travel to New York City” to refine their negotiation skills “by representing a professional athlete or major brand.”1[1] https://www.brooklaw.edu/academics/adrhs/athlete-endorsement-negotiation-competition/ Throughout the Competition, law students connect with their competitors and professionals in entertainment and sports law and management.
This year’s competition welcomed law students from Brooklyn Law School, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, Georgetown University Law Center, Liberty University School of Law, Temple University Beasley School of Law, the University of Florida Levin College of Law, the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, and the University of Miami School of Law.
After three vigorous rounds of negotiating different fact patterns, the final round considered a deal between a fictional, rising National Football League star quarterback and a highly successful, but still developing, producer of sports drinks. Finalists Lauren Johnson and Madeline Katz from Cardozo represented the producer of the sports drinks, and Harvin Mezgin-Fahmi and Liam Endres from the University of Miami School of Law represented the rising star quarterback. Their negotiation considered a range of terms including a profit share, up-front compensation, and contractual term length, as well as the inclusion of Most Favored Nations (“MFN”) and Standard of Appearance clauses. This round was judged by Alex Rahmanan of
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, Corey Weisfeld of Abrams, Fensterman, Jason Schwartz of Gartner + Bloom, P.C., Megan Hallson of FilmNation, and Phil Karnofsky of AMC Networks Inc. Both teams zealously advocated for their clients and were able to reach a deal in just under forty minutes, which included an endorsement and a Superbowl advertisement appearance from the rising star quarterback, and a generous payment and profit share from the producer of the sports drinks. Cardozo School of Law’s Lauren Johnson and Madeline Katz, coached by Betty Wu and Rebecca Hine, took first place, and the University of Miami School of Law’s Harvin Mezgin-Fahmi and Liam Endres took second.
Brooklyn Law School looks forward to continuing to welcome law students from across the country at next year’s Athlete Endorsement Negotiation Competition. More information on Brooklyn’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Honor Society, and details on next year’s competition (when available), can be found here.
Written by: Daniella Vostinar, Brooklyn Law School’s Class of 2027.
