Name, image, and likeness (“NIL”) contracts are agreements between a student-athlete and a business or organization that permit an athlete to monetize their celebrity status. The basic exchange is money or things of value to the athlete and the right granted to the business/organization, from the athlete, to use the athlete’s name, image, and/or likeness in advertising and promotions. The NIL agreement will set out the obligations of the parties, including the payment, the specific rights granted, obligations of the athlete, obligations of the company/organization, what happens if the agreement is breached, etc.

Note that, for student-athletes, NIL agreements are nested in overlapping and reinforcing rules and regulations from governments, conferences, and colleges/universities. That is, many States have enacted laws that regulate, limit and place requirements on such NIL agreements. Also, every college and university that sponsors teams has established policies and procedures related to NIL agreements. It is also arguably true that certain federal statutes apply such as the advertising and business practices rules promulgated by the Federal Trade Commission under the FTC Act. As can be seen, NIL agreements are not simple or straightforward. This is one reason that student-athletes should hire an experienced NIL Rights attorney before they sign any NIL agreement.

A NIL agreement is also a binding legal document. That is, if there is a dispute with regard to the agreement, a lawsuit can be filed in the appropriate court asking the judge to enforce the agreement. And, an NIL agreement is enforceable. Of course, there may be valid differences of opinion about what an agreement requires, but the agreement will still be enforced based on the judge’s interpretation.

Aside from the foregoing, an NIL agreement has some common provisions which include:

• Length of time for the NIL agreement — even if the agreement is technically only one advertising campaign — like one commercial, one photo shoot, etc. — there must be a time limit; otherwise, the business/organization can use the commercial or photos forever
• Obligations of the student athlete — this is usually a very long part of an NIL agreement since the specific endorsement activities are set out, but also other requirements like remaining a member in good standing with the relevant team; see this ESPN article for some interesting ways in which student-athletes agreed to provide their endorsements
• Obligations of the business/company seeking the NIL rights — the main obligation is, of course, payment, timing of payment, etc.; but other obligations must be set forth like an obligation to obey rules and regulations determined by State laws and college/university policies; these provisions are often under-appreciated and under-negotiated
• Ranking of obligations — it is important to state, in the agreement, that the athlete must comply with State and federal laws first, then the policies of his or her college/university, and THEN the obligations in the NIL agreement
• What happens if there is a breach of the agreement? — these are called “default” provisions and can be thought of as “punishment” provisions; for example, if the athlete fails to show for a personal promotional event, what is the “punishment” under the agreement?
• And more

Contact the NIL Attorneys at Revision Legal

For more information, contact the experienced NIL Lawyers at Revision Legal. You can contact us through the form on this page or call (855) 473-8474.