Sports and Fitness Expert Witness

Expert Witness No. 599

Connecticut

ACADEMIC BACKGROUND 

J.D.       The Ohio State University College of Law, 1990.

              Research Assistant for the Associate Dean on a sports contract law book 

M.A.     The Ohio State University, 1990.

              Major:Physical Education emphasis in Sport Man­agement 

B.S.               California State University, Sacramento, 1986.

              Major:Business Administration, Minor:Communications 

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY 

Teaching Experience 

Associate Professor,University of New Haven, School of Business. 1999 to Present. Teach various courses including: business law, employment law, sport law, sport finance, sport management, and facility administration. Responsible for coordinating/placing internships for sport management students and coordinating all student internships in the School of Business. Also responsible for developing external programs, coordinating advisory board, coordinating MBA concentration in Sport Management, coordinating M.S. degree and concentration in facility management, editing program newsletter and serving on various university committees. Responsible for obtaining International Association of Assembly Managers (IAAM) accreditation for M.S. program (one of only three such programs in the world). Research emphasis includes sport finance, employment law concerns, facility management issues, and sports valuation issues. 

Assistant Professor, Curriculum Coordinator, Sports and Fitness Administration Curriculum, University of Houston. 1995 to 1999. Taught a variety of sport administration classes at the graduate and undergraduate level including sports law, finance, marketing, management, sports facilities administration, human resource administration and managing special events. Responsibilities included advising over 50 graduate and undergraduate students, curriculum management, coordinating faculty teaching assignment, representing curriculum area in college meetings, soliciting internship opportunities, actively working with the business community to place students in full-time positions upon graduation, and developing and implementing a national marketing campaign to attract new graduate students from the business sector. Research emphasis included sports employment issues, youth sports administration, sports dispute resolution, sports fundraising, and sports facility management. Also served as an Adjunct Professor with the University of Houston Law Center, teaching sports law. 

Adjunct Faculty of Physical Education, The University of San Francisco, 1993 to 1995. Taught sports law and legal/ethical issues in sports to Master's degree students. Alternate instructor for economics and finance for sports and fitness managers and facility planning and opera­tions management courses. Participated in curriculum development for sports law, marketing and event management, human resource management, facility plan­ning and operations, and sports economics and finances courses. Active in program man­agement, internship placement and student recruiting. 

Part-Time Faculty of Physical Education, California State University, Sacramento, 1985 to 1987. Taught at least one beginning and intermediate bad­minton classes each semester. Supervised all gymnasium use for all badminton related activities.  

Legal/Consulting Experience 

Managing Partner, GF&A, LLC, 1993 to Present. Manage consulting business focused on risk management, facility security, and all aspects of sports liability analysis. Hired by various law firms, businesses, and insurance companies to prepare legal and economic reports primarily for sports related actions. Provide assistance in all phases of trial preparation and strategy. Primary areas of specialization include: negligence, risk management, program administration, economic damages, and facility safety issues. Expertwitness for various matters including: the State of Wisconsin in the nine suits stemming from the 1993 Camp Randall Stadium student rush, standards of care for numerous injury cases, injuries to various amateur and professional athletes, and the 1994 death of an Alabama State University football player. Typically work on 4-5 cases a year. 

Counsel, Pepe & Hazard, 2000-2002. 

Provided advice to the firm and served as a figurehead for their work in the sport and employment areas.  

Of Counsel,Bisk & Lutz, 1996-1999. 

Provide advice and client assistance as General Counsel or Special Counsel for sports organizations such as: the Sportsplex Operators and Developers Association (SODA), Texas Special Olympics, Houston Youth Sports Development Foundation (part of the Houston Park and Recreation Department), World Amateur Sports Association, and the Resort and Commercial Recreation Association. 

Director and Litigation Associate,Sports Law Center ("SLC") a division of Schachter, Kristoff, Orenstein & Berkowitz (SKOB), 1992 to 1995. 

Legal practice emphasizing sports facility, employment, and business law issues. Provided a full range of legal services to meet clients' needs including newsletters, seminars, risk manage­ment audits, compliance audits, contract negotiations, and event management. Edited the SLC's "Sports Law Reporter" and "Sports Facility Law Reporter" legal newsletters. Provided extensive research into case valuation to assist insurance companies litigating injury related claims. Worked on numerous employment law cases for SKOB including sexual harassment, wrongful termination, unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation insurance, Americans with Disability Act, and other statutory disputes. The Sports Facility Law Reporter was renamed Safety Solution in 1998 and was underwritten by Champion America, Inc. until the company was sold in 1999. 

Sports Industry Experience

Analyst, Paul Kagan Associates, 1990 to 1992. 

Researched and performed in-depth financial analysis concerning sports broadcast contracts, the value of sports media rights, sports economics/finance, and the advertising revenue generated by sports broadcasting. Responsible for all data acquisition, verification, statistical analysis and final presentation. Wrote over 90 articles and special studies for Paul Kagan's "Media Sports Business" Newsletter. 

Director of Promotions and Marketing for the 1990 National Collegiate Athletic Associ­ation's Northeast Regional Women's Gymnastics Championships, The Ohio State University Athletic Department, 1989 to 1990.  

Advised, taught and managed the activity of fellow Masters and Ph.D. students in developing event master plans, event budget, securing required funding and developing comprehensive promotional strategies. 

Vice-President Marketing, Women's Pro Basketball League, 1989.  

Developed the league's and an individual team's marketing plans, pro forma budgets, and public relations ma­terial for a start-up professional league. 

Director, Central Ohio Senior Olympics, 1989.  

Hired five months prior to the event, but increased participation by 120 percent and sponsorship by 250 percent. Super­vised the 39 different events at four different facilities while coordinating 250 volunteers. 

Coaching Experience 

2000-Present, Volunteer Head Coach Yale Badminton Club, Yale University, New Haven, CT.

From 1984 through 1990 I served as the head badminton coach at three different universities including:theState Capitol Badminton Club (CSUS from 1984 to 1986) which won the 1986 Northern California Championships;the

Stanford University Badminton Club (1986 to 1987) which finished second in the 1986 National Intercollegiate Badminton Championship; and The Ohio State University's Buckeye Badminton Club (1987 to 1990). Had three players named All-American, produced two U.S. National Team members, the U.S. Nation­al Women's Champion, and one future U.S. Olympic Team member.

Keywords

Forensic expert witness, consultant, Sexual Harassment, Legal Services, Seminars, Risk Management, Compliance Audits, Contract Negotiations, Event Management, Research Valuation, Statistical Analysis, Securing Funding, Promotional Strategies, Negligence, Economic Damages, Injuries to Professional Athletes