Arent Fox LLP Expands National Sports Practice to West Coast

Noted Sports Law Attorney Maidie E. Oliveau Joins Firm as Counsel in Los Angeles Office LOS ANGELES, July 6
LOS ANGELES, July 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Arent Fox LLP today announced noted sports attorney Maidie E. Oliveau, 55, has joined the firm as counsel in its Los Angeles office, adding a West Coast presence to the firm's renowned sports practice. Arent Fox's sports law practice is already highly experienced, serving as counsel on a variety of matters to various professional teams, including the National Basketball Association's Washington Wizards, Charlotte Bobcats and New Jersey Nets; Major League Baseball's Tampa Bay Rays; National Football League's Miami Dolphins; and the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League; Major Soccer League's D.C. United; Women's National Basketball Association's Washington Mystics.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090629/PH39761 )

Maidie E. Oliveau is a respected, well-known sports attorney, having represented sponsors, event organizers, television broadcasters, sports associations and other rights holders for more than 20 years. She has also represented professional tennis, basketball and other athletes. She brings superior experience and exceptional knowledge of the sports industry to Arent Fox.

"We are thrilled that an attorney of Maidie's talent and ability is joining Arent Fox's West Coast team," said Robert O'Brien, the partner in charge of Arent Fox's Los Angeles office. "The experience and skill she brings are fantastic additions to our firm's sports law practice and further solidifies Arent Fox's reputation as a leading national firm offering services in sports."

"I am delighted to be joining the Arent Fox team here in Los Angeles," said Ms. Oliveau. "It is the perfect fit for me, my practice and my clients. Arent Fox's reputation for delivering high-quality sports related services and working on some of the most prominent sports transactions in the country is well known. I am very pleased to have been given the opportunity to expand the firm's sports law practice and to add a West Coast presence to the firm's already national practice."

Ms. Oliveau has worked on a number of major sports-related transactions, negotiating and administering more than 200 deals totaling over $600 million, including:(i) naming rights agreement for AT&T Park (formerly SBC Park and Pacific Bell Park) in San Francisco; (ii) the Detroit Pistons' telecast rights to Fox Sports Net Detroit, the local regional sports network; (iii) the Tennis Channel agreement with the French Tennis Federation for the rights to telecast the Roland-Garros Grand Slam tournament; (iv) AstraZeneca's CRESTOR brand sponsorship of the PGA Tour; (v) Fox's acquisition of the Los Angeles Dodgers; and (vi) Sugar Bowl's title sponsorship deal with Allstate (and previously with Nokia and USF&G).

Arent Fox has been involved in some of the most significant sports transactions in recent history, including representing Brooklyn Arena, LLC and the NJ Nets in connection with the Barclays Center naming rights transaction, the largest arena naming rights and team sponsorship transaction in the history of sports and entertainment; representing the Charlotte Bobcats in connection with the Time Warner Cable Center naming rights and team sponsorship transaction and the related media rights agreement with Fox Sports, representing the current owners of the Tampa Bay Rays in connection with their acquisition of a controlling interest in this MLB franchise.

Arent Fox also has extensive experience in the acquisition and development of sports facilities, including the Verizon Center - the downtown DC sports arena that is home to the Washington Wizards, the Washington Mystics, the Washington Capitals and the Georgetown Hoyas and was also involved in the development and construction of several other professional sports facilities, including: Camden Yards (Baltimore Orioles); M&T Bank Stadium (Baltimore Ravens); PETCO Park (San Diego Padres); and Miller Park (Milwaukee Brewers).

Arent Fox's sports law practice also encompasses providing legal counsel on labor and employment issues (including players' and coaches' contracts, and salary caps issues) for professional sports teams.

The addition of Ms. Oliveau to the firm is the latest development in the rapid growth of Arent Fox's Los Angeles office, which was launched on January 1, 2007, when Washington, DC-based Arent Fox and Los Angeles-based litigation boutique O'Brien Abeles LLP combined their firms.

Starting with nine lawyers in January 2007, the Los Angeles office has grown to nearly 30 attorneys - including lateral partners and new associates - and more than 20 staff members. In December 2007, because of the firm's rapid growth, Arent Fox Los Angeles relocated to the city's prestigious Gas Company Tower located at 555 West 5th Street.

About Maidie E. Oliveau:

In 1990 Ms. Oliveau established LawSports, a boutique firm in Los Angeles. Prior to founding LawSports, Ms. Oliveau was senior vice president and general counsel to DelWilber + Associates (DWA), where she administered more than $50 million in sponsorship contract commitments and handled the general legal affairs of DWA. She came to DWA from the Women's International Professional Tennis Council (now the WTA Tour). Prior to that she was part of the team that organized the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 1984.

Since May 1997, Ms. Oliveau has served as an arbitrator for the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), whose jurisdiction has been adopted by all the sports on the summer and winter Olympic programs as final and enforceable. In addition, Ms. Oliveau is on the panel of American Arbitration Association (AAA) and London Court of International Arbitration arbitrators and has acted as an arbitrator in AAA cases brought under the US Anti-Doping Agency protocol and the US Olympic Committee Code of Conduct. She also serves as an advisory trustee on the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission as well as sits on the boards of advisors of the National Sports Law Institute, the Loyola Sports Law Institute and the Georgetown Entertainment and Media Alliance.

She is a frequent contributor to conferences and publications in the business of sports and entertainment, including the American Bar Association Entertainment & Sports Forum, the Sports Lawyers Association, IEG's sponsorship conference and the Beverly Hills Bar Association's speaking series. She serves on the editorial board of the ABA's Entertainment & Sports Lawyer.

Ms. Oliveau earned her JD degree from the Georgetown University Law Center.

About Arent Fox

Arent Fox LLP (www.arentfox.com) -- with offices in Washington, DC, New York and Los Angeles-- is a recognized leader in areas including intellectual property, real estate, health care, life sciences and complex litigation. With more than 350 lawyers and advisors nationwide, Arent Fox has extensive experience in corporate securities, financial restructuring, bankruptcy, government relations, labor and employment, finance, tax, corporate compliance, and the global business market. The firm represents Fortune 500 companies, privately held corporations and partnerships, nonprofit organizations, government agencies, trade associations, foreign governments and other entities.

SOURCE Arent Fox LLP