The DLA Piper team is an ‘excellent choice’ for major leagues, media companies and national governing bodies, frequently assisting with sports-related commercial partnership rights, media rights regulation and complex copyright litigation. Nick Fitzpatrick and Paul Gray co-lead the practice, with the former primarily specialising in brand exploitation and event organisation, while the latter is an expert in sports finance transactions. John Wilks covers IP matters within the sports and media spheres, Jon Kenworthy is an experienced M&A practitioner, and Samuel Churney is also noted. The practice was boosted in the spring of 2024 by the arrival of a team from Armstrong Teasdale, including Zane Shihab and James Thorndyke.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘An excellent choice for TMT – sport. Years of experience in this field.’
‘Ruth Hoy (partner): excellent legal knowledge, great at client care and a pleasure to work with. John Wilks: a meticulous lawyer who always has his eye on the client's goals.’
Key clients
- The Football Association Premier League
- Football DataCo Limited
- National Basketball Association (“NBA”)
- ITV
- The Hut Group Limited
- Investec
Work highlights
- Acting as the Premier League’s go-to advisers on a wide range of commercial and regulatory matters and have undertaken a great deal of IP enforcement work for the client.
- Advised leading international bank and wealth manager Investec on its partnership with European Professional Club Rugby.
- Advised the e-commerce retail company The Hut Group on its multi-year sponsorship deal with Williams Racing F1 team.
Lawyers
Hall of Fame
The lawyers at the very top of the profession, widely known and respected by peers and clients for their longstanding involvement in market-leading work.
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
James Thorndyke
DLA PiperPractice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
Nick Fitzpatrick, Paul Gray