Zion Williamson's former marketing agent appeals $685K attorneys' fee award in $100M dispute

Gina Ford of Prime Sports Marketing, the former marketing agent for New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson, has filed an appellate brief challenging a federal judge's order requiring her to pay roughly $685,000 in attorneys' fees to Williamson. Ford lost an underlying $100 million breach-of-contract suit after courts found the marketing agreement she signed with Williamson in 2019 was void, partly because it lacked a required notice that signing would cost him NCAA eligibility, and partly because Ford was not registered as an athlete agent in North Carolina. Ford's attorney argues the fee award is unjust because Ford raised good-faith legal arguments about whether the student-athlete eligibility warning requirement should even apply to a presumptive first-overall NBA draft pick who was unlikely to return to college. The district judge who imposed the fee award found Ford should have recognized the contract's fatal deficiencies and faulted her for continuing to litigate after the court flagged serious problems with her claims.

This was not a frivolous lawsuit," Eaton wrote. "Ford advanced good faith, meritorious legal and factual arguments. She simply did not prevail on them.
From Sportico

Why it matters

For service providers: Player representatives and marketing agents should note that failure to register in a state and omit required eligibility warnings can expose them to substantial fee liability even in close legal disputes.

For brands: Brands that negotiated with Ford during the disputed six-week period, including several major consumer companies named in court records, remain connected to a long-running legal dispute.

For athletes: College athletes and their advisers are reminded that missing statutory disclosures in representation contracts can void agreements and shift significant legal costs to the losing side.

Read the full story at Sportico

Sources

Sportico · Michael McCann: Zion Williamson’s Ex-Agent Appeals $700K Fee Award in $100M Case

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