Professional Sports Leagues, Antitrust, and the Single-Entity Theory

Download or read book Professional Sports Leagues, Antitrust, and the Single-Entity Theory written by Michael S. Jacobs and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Article will argue that single-entity status is inappropriate and unnecessary for professional sports leagues. It will proffer that while professional sports leagues might initially appear to be significantly different from other joint ventures, the difference is functionally superficial and does not justify a fundamental departure from the antitrust rules applicable to other joint ventures. It will contend further that the Copperweld decision, so heavily relied upon by the advocates of single-entity status, does not support their argument, but refutes it instead. It will claim that the hybrid created by the commentators-the league that is at times a single entity and at other times a collection of separate actors-is neither a logical creation nor one that can be usefully defined. Finally, it will argue that the legal and economic logic of the Supreme Court's recent antitrust opinions strongly suggest that undiminished output is the best measure of consumer welfare under the Rule of Reason. When the Rule of Reason is applied to the governing rules and business decisions of professional sports leagues, it reveals that few of those rules and decisions serve to decrease the leagues' output, and therefore the single-entity treatment for those leagues is unnecessary to save them from antitrust condemnation.