Summer Sports Dispute Resolution Course with Industry Experts

Professor Maureen Weston and Jeff Benz, an arbitrator with JAMS and the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and former General Counsel for United States Olympic Committee, led a summer intensive course on the study of Olympic and international sports dispute resolution for students. The interactive course focused on conflicts that arise in Olympic and international sports and offered students practical exercises simulating ADR's application in sport industry disputes. The course included conversations with leading industry experts including: renowned athlete lawyer Howard Jacobs, JAMS and Safesport arbitrator Barbara Reeves, human rights and sports advocate Faraz Shaheli, Robert Hacker, former Fox Sports Vice President for Legal and Business Affairs, Kacie Wallace, US Olympic Committee Ombuds, and Chief Officer of the US Anti-Doping Agency, Travis Tygert. The class culminated with a presentation on a new era for ADR in China around the visit of the Chinese International Economic Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) to Straus and Pepperdine Law.

Pepperdine Law's Entertainment, Media, & Sports (EMS) Dispute Resolution Program provides students with opportunities for an interdisciplinary study of legal, business, and dispute resolution in the EMS industry, as well as offering them essential experiential learning and networking opportunities. Students, with Professor Weston and Jeff Benz, are pictured.