I had the privilege of attending John McCarthy’s and Jerin Valel’s COMMAND MMA Judge training course this weekend in Richmond, BC. The experience is invaluable in providing insight into the complexity of judging an MMA bout with integrity. Whether you aspire to become an MMA judge or are … More A Simple Change to MMA’s Unified Rules Can Go a Long Way
In my ongoing efforts to highlight legal action taken against those accused of unlawful use of MMA Pay Per View products, reasons for judgement were released last week by the United States District Court, E.D. California, addressing an application for enforcement of a default judgement. In last week’s case (Joe Hand Promotions v. Sorondo) the Plaintiff … More Joe Hand Promotions Pursue Collections Remedies Years After the Fact
(Update – July 11, 2014 – The BCAC has changed their position and did indeed implement an out of competition test prior to UFC 174 on Bagautinov) _____________________________________________________ UFC 174 will be the promotion’s first event regulated under the newly formed Office of the British Columbia Athletic Commissioner. With the big show coming to town … More No Out of Competition Drug Tests For UFC 174 According to BCAC
While British Columbia has a Province wide Athletic Commission with monopoly powers to oversee and regulate MMA, BC’s legal framework gives individual cities a choice allowing them to outright ban certain combat sports. Specifically, section 59(f)(1) of BC’s Community Charter allows the passage of City bylaws that “prohibit professional boxing, professional wrestling and other professional athletic … More City of Vernon, BC Looking to Ban Mixed Martial Arts
Recently I had the pleasure of being interviewed by The Lawyer’s Weekly to discuss New Brunswick’s Bill 72 which set out a legal framework for the regulation of Combat Sports in the Province. If you are visiting this site for the first time after reading the article, welcome! At the time of the interview Bill … More Welcome Lawyer’s Weekly Readers
Two more Provinces now have professional MMA and other combat sports officially legalized. Saskatchewan’s Athletic’s Commission Act and New Brunswick’s Combat Sport Act have now both received Royal Assent with Saskatchewan’s law coming into force on May 1, 2014 and New Brunswick’s law coming into force on May 21, 2014. You can click here for … More Saskatchewan and New Brunswick Combat Sport Laws Now in Force
In my ongoing efforts to document caselaw addressing UFC Pay Per View piracy allegations, reasons for judgement were released this week by the United States District Court in San Diego dismissing such a claim against a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gym. In this week’s case (Joe Hand Promotions Inc. v. Cusi et al) the Plaintiff, Joe … More BJJ Gym Sued For Showing UFC Event Without Commercial Licence
The Office of the BC Athletic Commissioner has released their long awaited anti Doping Policy and Therapeutic Use Exemption policy for Performance Enhancing Drugs. You can find a full copy of the policies here: BCAC Anti Doping Policy BCAC TUE Policy Section 21 of the BC Minister’s Athletic Commissioner Regulations adopted the WADA Prohibited List … More BC Athletic Commission Releases TUE And Anti Doping Policies; Bans TRT TUE’s
The Sikaran World Championships have been scheduled to take place on May 10 at the Winnipeg Convention Center. The advertised events include ‘sparring’. The problem? A Sikaran contact sparring contest will run afoul of the Criminal Code creating a potential showdown with authorities in Winnipeg this weekend. As previously discussed, Section 83 of the Criminal Code makes … More The Section 83 Gap Rears Its Head in Winnipeg
With the 2014 Ontario Provincial Election triggered, now is the time for Ontario’s political parties to lay out their plans to address the legislative gap making many amateur combat sports illegal in the Province. To date the Government has been, to put it kindly, vague in identifying their plans to address this situation. With an … More Which Ontario Party Will Fix The Amateur Combat Sports Legal Gap?
Combat Sports Law 