I have finally had a chance to read Is this Legal, a book written by UFC co-founder Art Davie. The book accounts “how Davie started the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and launched mixed martial arts” in the US. The 260 page book is a great read for any fan of combat sports. I was 16 when UFC 1 … More Is This Legal? A Quick Review
Update November 10, 2014 – the second decision discussed below, Joe Hand Promotions v. Lorenzana, survived a motion to alter the judgement amount. Joe Hand argued that the damages were too low and would not serve the goals of deterrence. Judge Davila disagreed and found a penalty twice the amount of the PPV licence was … More The Latest UFC PPV Piracy Prosecutions Result in Modest Damages
Last week a British Columbia jury awarded former UFC fighter Jason Day approximately $340,000 following what turned out to be a career ending motor vehicle collision. Day was struck on his bicycle by an SUV and sustained chronic soft tissue injuries to his knees and ankles. While the injuries did not prevent him from pursuing … More Former UFC Fighter Jason Day Awarded $340K Following Career Ending Collision
Update – August, 6, 2014 – Bleacher Report, who initially broke this story, has obtained correspondence between Sonnen’s lawyers and the Nevada Commission. The legal arguments advanced largely mirror the below arguments and additionally point to recorded comments of NSAC Chairman Francisco Aguilar, where he agreed that Metamoris “is not subject” to the ban imposed on … More Empty Threats? – The NSAC’s Weak Position To Impose Fines on Sonnen
Included in the 2014 Association of Boxing Commission Annual Conference Documents were lists setting out the volume of sanctioned amateur and professional events by various State, Tribal, Provincial and Municipal Athletic Commissions in the US and Canada. The busiest commission one again is California overseeing 163 events in 2013. Second is Texas with 94 and … More Reported 2009-2013 MMA Event Volume By Commission
In my effort to create a database of Combat Sports prosecutions pursuant to Canada’s Criminal Code, I have obtained the full transcript of the sentencing proceedings from Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Justice in the case of HMTQ v. Crowthers and Daku. By way of backgound, Patrick Crowthers and Derek Daku of Saskatchewan’s Prestige Fight Club have … More Reasons For Judgement in Canada’s First “Modern” Prizefighting Prosecution
The UFC’s Matt Brown failed to make weight today ahead of UFC on Fox 12. He weighed in at 172.5 pounds, 1.5 pounds above the welterweight limit. Under California rules Brown was allowed a further hour to try and shed the weight, however, due to a reported ‘miscommunication’ this did not happen. The details of … More CSAC Reportedly Ignores Physician Advice During Rapid Extreme Weight Cut
In the latest chapter of ongoing anti piracy litigation of UFC Pay Per View products, reasons for judgement were released this week by the US District Court, ED Missouri, Eastern Division, assessing damages in default proceedings following alleged piracy of UFC 128 by a commercial establishment. In this week’s case (Joe Hand Promotions Inc. v. Game … More $11,000 Default Judgement Ordered After UFC 128 Piracy
Adding to this site’s archived caselaw of Pay Per View piracy decisions, reasons for judgement were released this week by the US District Court, N.D. California, assessing damages for such a claim. In this week’s case (Joe Hand Promotions, INC v. Tamayo) the Defendant operated a Crossfit gym. He showed UFC 159 at his facility … More Minimum Statutory Damages Awarded Following Piracy of UFC 159
Update August 13, 2014 – Voting on this bylaw is now scheduled for September 8 at 1:30 pm Update July 23, 2014 – Today the City of Vernon confirmed to me, via Twitter, that they have dropped the intended ban on amateur MMA with the proposed legislation only targeting professional Mixed Martial Arts … More City of Vernon Considers Limiting Ban on MMA to Professional Events
Combat Sports Law 