Entrepreneurial Business Law Clinic partners with Ohio State Athletics to form NIL initiative

By: James Grega, Jr.

Over the last two years, the landscape of college athletics has drastically changed with the NCAA’s approval of a policy that allows students and student-athletes to profit off their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL).

With NIL at the forefront of college athletics, the Moritz College of Law is taking a step to help students and student-athletes at Ohio State better understand NIL and maximize opportunities.

The Entrepreneurial Business Law Clinic at the Moritz College of Law has partnered with Ohio State Athletics to help students and student-athletes better understand the legal aspects of NIL, specifically contracts.

“We are thrilled to announce a partnership with the Ohio State Moritz College of Law and their Entrepreneurial Business Law Clinic (EBLC) to empower student-athletes with confidence as they navigate Name, Image, and Likeness,” said Senior Associate Athletic Director Carey Hoyt. “This collaboration will provide valuable insight to our student-athletes as they learn the complexities of the language used in contracts and how they can best protect their NIL.”

Associate Clinical Professor of Law Paige Wilson is the director of the EBLC, which just celebrated its 10-year anniversary. Wilson said Ohio State recently identified a need for counsel when it came to students and student-athletes who cannot afford agents or other representation.

“They need help understanding what they are signing up for, specifically in instances where they aren’t represented by an agent,” Wilson said. “For example, exclusivity can be a concern. In most cases, students won’t want to sign away their Name, Image, and Likeness forever such that they can’t work with other companies.”

In January, Ohio State’s Office of Legal Affairs led a training with the EBLC students at Moritz to identify areas in which students and student-athletes need help. While EBLC students cannot serve as agents for students or student-athletes, they can assist with general knowledge of NIL and how to navigate specific contracts.

The EBLC has launched an intake form where Ohio State students and student-athletes can request assistance from EBLC students at Moritz.

“We are open to all Ohio State students and student-athletes,” Wilson said. “We expect to assist students who have contracts for smaller dollar amounts, but we are open to all Ohio State students. We are operating on a first-come, first-served basis.”

Having just launched in January, Wilson said they are unsure what the exact number of clients might look like in the first year.

“We will probably do a couple dozen contracts this semester and increase from there,” she said. “My hope is that our EBLC students can become efficient at issue-spotting so that the students and student-athletes can then be more informed to negotiate and advocate for themselves.”