The world of sports and entertainment usually filled with glitz and glamour is something any young and budding soul would want to be a part of.
Law shares an interesting relationship with the field of sports and entertainment as sports and entertainment requires lawyers to help them carry on with their activities.
The thought of becoming a sports or entertainment lawyer might be enticing because the opportunity of representing athletes, celebrities, accompanying them on tours is something no law student would want to let go off. So the obvious question that arises in the mind of a young law aspirant is what exactly does a sports and entertainment lawyer do?
The basic job of a sports and entertainment lawyers comprises of representing clients belonging to these respective professions. Since both sports and the entertainment industry has to deal with lots of business transactions, lawyers are needed by these two fields in order to represent them in case of any trouble, keeping a track of business deals, profits etc.
Knowledge about the field of sports and entertainment is necessary if one wishes to flourish as a legal representative of either field. The work of a sports and entertainment lawyer is mainly a desk job but consists of variations. Being a sport or an entertainment lawyer does not restrict one to any particular pattern of work. Entertainment lawyers can work in fields of advertisement, branding, publicity, marketing etc and Sports lawyers can use their legal skills for general representation, looking at the legal aspects of contracts and agreements, collaborations, employment etc. Variety is well served in the profession of a sport or an entertainment lawyer and is a major reason why young law graduates are looking to make a mark in these fields.
Practice is necessary if aspiring lawyers wish to make a mark as either a sport or an entertainment lawyer and it is recommended that law graduates do two things sincerely:
- Firstly law graduates must ensure that they receive proper training from a law firm because becoming a sports and entertainment lawyer requires one to handle ample paperwork, execute deals with precision, meet with clients and solve legal complications involved in a matter of sport or entertainment and many such jobs which require a quick presence of mind and smart execution. Needless to say, being trained by a proper law firm ensures that these qualities become a part of a young law graduate.
- The second step that a law graduate must take sincerely is to acquaint him or her with the fields of sports and entertainment respectively. Both these sectors require contacts for a young lawyer to progress and hence he or she has to know and experience the respective sectors very well. Learning about the functioning of the two fields, the legal workings, gathering experience, acquainting with people and knowing from them are what a sports or entertainment lawyer should ideally do for the first two years. Once the necessary experience and sense of working has been gathered, it becomes easier to climb the ladder of success in the field of sports and entertainment law.
Being a sports and entertainment lawyer in India requires one to practice under a proper firm which has the necessary resources to train young lawyers and develop them. There are a number of law firms which train young lawyers in the field of Entertainment law and then place them to execute their legal skills in the glamorous field of entertainment.
Lawyers looking to make a mark in the field of Sports law can also take a look at the Sports Law and Welfare Association of India which promotes and recruits lawyers interested in exploring the world of Sports from a legal point of view. Besides this, a number of law firms are interested in sports law as it is a highly emerging and profitable legal field and train students adequately so that they are able to make a mark given the success of the global sports and entertainment scenario and the requirement of lawyers.
