Gunster's Jonathan Osborne was recently featured in Inc., weighing in on the NCAA's new five-year eligibility rule and its ripple effects on the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) economy.
Jonathan explained that the rule change is likely to benefit mid-tier athletes or those at mid-major programs the most, rather than the top earners already commanding multimillion-dollar NIL deals. He also predicted a shift in how NIL deals will be structured going forward, as athletes gain more certainty about their eligibility timelines.
Jonathan explains, "I'd expect that both athletes and companies that want business with them will start to put in place longer-term endorsement deals—instead of being a deal for one season, they could be for longer terms, now that they have some certainty as to how long a student could be in college playing their sport."
Jonathan K. Osborne serves as Gunster's Fort Lauderdale Office Managing Shareholder and is chair of the firm's White Collar Defense & Internal Investigations practice. He began his practice at Gunster and later returned to the firm after serving in the U.S. Department of Justice as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of Florida.
Jonathan is a first-chair trial lawyer and counselor to organizations and individuals in complex civil and white collar matters and internal investigations. On the civil side, Jonathan has handled a variety of matters in federal and state courts and arbitration.
