Free Speech In Sports: Do Athletes Tweet At Their Own Risk?

Professional athletes recently united behind Black Lives Matter when they refused to play baseball and basketball games that the professional leagues were forced to postpone. Some college teams are wearing uniforms promoting justice, equality, and other societal values. This conduct raises serious legal issues as to the scope of the First Amendment right to free speech of athletes in high school, college, and the professional leagues. This course will examine the First Amendment rights of student-athletes and professional athletes to express their views whether they are on the sidelines or between the lines.

Presented by New Jersey attorney and college professor Gary J. Chester, this program will benefit attorneys who represent athletes, school districts, universities, and professional teams that are almost certain to face issues of participant protest in the future.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify free speech issues in sports
2. Review the legal challenges presented when athletes exercise their right to free speech
3. Discuss relevant case law and theories relating to the limits of the athlete's right to express his/her views
4. Predict the course of judicial interpretation in this subject area