Sports agent Jason Paul Wood got into trouble as he engaged with two Miami baseball players in 2006. He talked to them about turning pro. This should have not been a problem but his inability to inform the university and register with the state of Florida resulted in a fine of $2,500 fine against him (Zagier, 2010).
This is just one of the rising numbers of court cases in recent years that involve sports agents. In this regard, it is in hopes that the enacted sport agent legislation—when properly enforced—will protect college athletes and higher education institutions within their states.
Among other laws that ought to defend institutions, especially student-athletes, are the Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act (SPARTA) and the Uniform Athlete Agents Act (UAAA) (Zagier, 2010). Cotten and Wolohan (2010) mentioned in their book, Law for recreation and sport managers, that such legislation have aided college students and academic institutions and defended them against unsafe and dangerous acts by deceitful sports agents. UAAA had been the standardized rules for sports agents for over a decade now. It is being enforced in 39 states. Aside from compulsory registration, agents need to notify schools instantaneously when they sign college athletes. Two weeks are given to students to think about the arrangements and decide whether or not to cancel the contracts. Schools are also entitled to prosecute agents who disrupt the law. Civil or criminal penalties are imposed on agents who fail to comply with the rules. These laws should regulate the activities of sports agents as well as limit their influence on college students. This helps mitigate the potential harm that contacting with sports agents could bring to students.
It is argued in this paper that sports agents must be evaluated and qualified under a registration system before negotiating business with any athlete, be it student or professionals. This paper also recommends establishing a review board of sports agents whose tasks would be to abolish the devious agents who do not perform their responsibilities and duties in representing student-athletes.
References
Cotten, D.J., &Wolohan, J.T. (2010). Law for recreation and sport managers (5th ed.). Dubuque,
IA: Kendall-Hunt.
Zagier, S. (2010, August).Laws On sports agents rarely enforced. Retrieved from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/17/laws-on-sports-agents-rar_n_685000.html
