Minnesota Legislature
Office of the Revisor of Statutes
Minnesota Session Laws - 2002, Regular Session
Key: (1) language to be deleted (2) new language
CHAPTER 332-H.F.No. 2719
An act relating to higher education; providing for
registration of agents of student athletes; defining
terms; providing penalties and remedies; appropriating
money; proposing coding for new law as Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 81A.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Section 1. [81A.01] [SHORT TITLE.]
Sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 may be cited as the Uniform
Athlete Agents Act.
Sec. 2. [81A.02] [DEFINITIONS.]
Subdivision 1. [TERMS.] For purposes of sections 81A.01 to
81A.21, the terms defined in this section have the meanings
given them.
Subd. 2. [AGENCY CONTRACT.] "Agency contract" means an
agreement in which a student athlete authorizes a person to
negotiate or solicit on behalf of the student athlete a
professional sports services contract or an endorsement contract.
Subd. 3. [ATHLETE AGENT.] "Athlete agent" means an
individual who enters into an agency contract with a student
athlete or, directly or indirectly for remuneration, recruits or
solicits a student athlete to enter into an agency contract.
The term includes an individual who represents to the public
that the individual is an athlete agent. The term does not
include a spouse, parent, sibling, grandparent, or guardian of
the student athlete or an individual acting solely on behalf of
a professional sports team or professional sports organization.
Subd. 4. [ATHLETIC DIRECTOR.] "Athletic director" means an
individual responsible for administering the overall athletic
program of an educational institution or, if an educational
institution has separately administered athletic programs for
male students and female students, the athletic program for
males or the athletic program for females, as appropriate.
Subd. 5. [COMMISSIONER.] "Commissioner" means the
commissioner of commerce.
Subd. 6. [CONTACT.] "Contact" means a communication,
direct or indirect, between an athlete agent and a student
athlete, to recruit or solicit the student athlete to enter into
an agency contract.
Subd. 7. [ENDORSEMENT CONTRACT.] "Endorsement contract"
means an agreement under which a student athlete is employed or
receives consideration to use on behalf of the other party any
value that the student athlete may have because of publicity,
reputation, following, or fame obtained because of athletic
ability or performance.
Subd. 8. [INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORT.] "Intercollegiate sport"
means a sport played at the collegiate level for which
eligibility requirements for participation by a student athlete
are established by a national association for the promotion or
regulation of collegiate athletics.
Subd. 9. [PERSON.] "Person" means an individual,
corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited
liability company, association, or joint venture; government,
governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; public
corporation; or any other legal or commercial entity.
Subd. 10. [PROFESSIONAL SPORTS SERVICES CONTRACT.]
"Professional sports services contract" means an agreement under
which an individual is employed, or agrees to render services,
as a player on a professional sports team, with a professional
sports organization, or as a professional athlete.
Subd. 11. [RECORD.] "Record" means information that is
inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an
electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable
form.
Subd. 12. [REGISTRATION.] "Registration" means
registration as an athlete agent under sections 81A.01 to 81A.21.
Subd. 13. [STATE.] "State" means a state of the United
States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States
Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject
to the jurisdiction of the United States.
Subd. 14. [STUDENT ATHLETE.] "Student athlete" means an
individual who engages in, is eligible to engage in, or may be
eligible in the future to engage in any intercollegiate sport.
If an individual is permanently ineligible to participate in a
particular intercollegiate sport, the individual is not a
student athlete for purposes of that sport.
Sec. 3. [81A.03] [SERVICE OF PROCESS; INVESTIGATING
POWERS.]
Subdivision 1. [APPOINTMENT OF AGENT.] By acting as an
athlete agent in this state, a nonresident individual appoints
the commissioner as the individual's agent for service of
process in any civil action in this state related to the
individual's acting as an athlete agent in this state.
Subd. 2. [SUBPOENA AND ENFORCEMENT POWERS.] The
commissioner may issue subpoenas for any material that is
relevant to the administration of sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 and
exercise other enforcement powers available to the commissioner
under chapter 45.
Sec. 4. [81A.04] [CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION REQUIRED.]
Subdivision 1. [GENERAL REQUIREMENT.] Except as otherwise
provided in subdivision 2, an individual may not act as an
athlete agent in this state without holding a certificate of
registration under section 81A.06 or 81A.08.
Subd. 2. [EXCEPTIONS.] Before being issued a certificate
of registration, an individual may act as an athlete agent in
this state for all purposes except signing an agency contract,
if:
(1) a student athlete or another person acting on behalf of
the student athlete initiates communication with the individual;
and
(2) within seven days after an initial act as an athlete
agent, the individual submits an application for registration as
an athlete agent in this state.
Subd. 3. [CONTRACTS VOID.] An agency contract resulting
from conduct in violation of this section is void, and the
athlete agent shall return any consideration received under the
contract.
Sec. 5. [81A.05] [REGISTRATION PROCESS.]
Subdivision 1. [REQUIREMENTS.] An applicant for
registration shall submit an application for registration to the
commissioner in a form prescribed by the commissioner. The
application must be in the name of an individual and, except as
otherwise provided in subdivision 2, signed or otherwise
authenticated by the applicant under penalty of perjury, and
state or contain:
(1) the name of the applicant and the address of the
applicant's principal place of business;
(2) the name of the applicant's business or employer, if
applicable;
(3) any business or occupation engaged in by the applicant
for the five years next preceding the date of submission of the
application;
(4) a description of the applicant's:
(i) formal training as an athlete agent;
(ii) practical experience as an athlete agent; and
(iii) educational background relating to the applicant's
activities as an athlete agent;
(5) the names and addresses of three individuals not
related to the applicant who are willing to serve as references;
(6) the name, sport, and last known team for each
individual for whom the applicant acted as an athlete agent
during the five years next preceding the date of submission of
the application;
(7) the names and addresses of all persons who are:
(i) with respect to the athlete agent's business if it is
not a corporation, the partners, members, officers, managers,
associates, or profit-sharers of the business; and
(ii) with respect to a corporation employing the athlete
agent, the officers, directors, and any shareholder of the
corporation having an interest of five percent or greater;
(8) whether the applicant or any person named under clause
(7) has been convicted of a crime that, if committed in this
state, would be a crime involving moral turpitude or a felony,
and identify the crime;
(9) whether there has been any administrative or judicial
determination that the applicant or any person named under
clause (7) has made a false, misleading, deceptive, or
fraudulent representation;
(10) any instance in which the conduct of the applicant or
any person named under clause (7) resulted in the imposition of
a sanction, suspension, or declaration of ineligibility to
participate in an interscholastic or intercollegiate athletic
event on a student athlete or educational institution;
(11) any sanction, suspension, or disciplinary action taken
against the applicant or any person named under clause (7)
arising out of occupational or professional conduct; and
(12) whether there has been any denial of an application
for, suspension or revocation of, or refusal to renew, the
registration or licensure of the applicant or any person named
under clause (7) as an athlete agent in any state.
Subd. 2. [RECIPROCAL APPLICATIONS OR CERTIFICATES.] An
individual who has submitted an application for, and holds a
certificate of, registration or licensure as an athlete agent in
another state may submit a copy of the application and
certificate in lieu of submitting an application in the form
prescribed under subdivision 1. The commissioner must accept
the application and the certificate from the other state as an
application for registration in this state if the application to
the other state:
(1) was submitted in the other state within six months next
preceding the submission of the application in this state and
the applicant certifies that the information contained in the
application is current;
(2) contains information substantially similar to or more
comprehensive than that required in an application submitted in
this state; and
(3) was signed by the applicant under penalty of perjury.
Sec. 6. [81A.06] [ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE OF
REGISTRATION.]
Subdivision 1. [AUTHORITY.] Except as otherwise provided
in subdivision 2, the commissioner must issue a certificate of
registration to an individual who complies with section 81A.05,
subdivision 1, or whose application has been accepted under
section 81A.05, subdivision 2.
Subd. 2. [REFUSAL.] (a) The commissioner may refuse to
issue a certificate of registration if the commissioner
determines that the applicant has engaged in conduct that has a
significant adverse effect on the applicant's fitness to act as
an athlete agent. In making the determination, the commissioner
may consider whether the applicant has:
(1) been convicted of a crime that, if committed in this
state, would be a crime involving moral turpitude or a felony;
(2) made a materially false, misleading, deceptive, or
fraudulent representation in the application or as an athlete
agent;
(3) engaged in conduct that would disqualify the applicant
from serving in a fiduciary capacity;
(4) engaged in conduct prohibited by section 81A.14;
(5) had a registration or licensure as an athlete agent
suspended, revoked, or denied or been refused renewal of
registration or licensure as an athlete agent in any state;
(6) engaged in conduct the consequence of which was that a
sanction, suspension, or declaration of ineligibility to
participate in an interscholastic or intercollegiate athletic
event was imposed on a student athlete or educational
institution; or
(7) engaged in conduct that significantly adversely
reflects on the applicant's credibility, honesty, or integrity.
(b) In making a determination under paragraph (a), the
commissioner shall consider:
(1) how recently the conduct occurred;
(2) the nature of the conduct and the context in which it
occurred; and
(3) any other relevant conduct of the applicant.
Subd. 3. [RENEWALS.] An athlete agent may apply to renew a
registration by submitting an application for renewal in a form
prescribed by the commissioner. The application for renewal
must be signed by the applicant under penalty of perjury and
must contain current information on all matters required in an
original registration.
Subd. 4. [RECIPROCAL RENEWALS.] An individual who has
submitted an application for renewal of registration or
licensure in another state, in lieu of submitting an application
for renewal in the form prescribed under subdivision 3, may file
a copy of the application for renewal and a valid certificate of
registration or licensure from the other state. The
commissioner must accept the application for renewal from the
other state as an application for renewal in this state if the
application to the other state:
(1) was submitted in the other state within six months next
preceding the filing in this state and the applicant certifies
the information contained in the application for renewal is
current;
(2) contains information substantially similar to or more
comprehensive than that required in an application for renewal
submitted in this state; and
(3) was signed by the applicant under penalty of perjury.
Subd. 5. [TERM.] A certificate of registration or a
renewal of a registration is valid for two years.
Sec. 7. [81A.07] [SUSPENSION, REVOCATION, OR REFUSAL TO
RENEW REGISTRATION.]
Subdivision 1. [AUTHORITY.] The commissioner may suspend,
revoke, or refuse to renew a registration for conduct that would
have justified denial of registration under section 81A.06,
subdivision 2.
Subd. 2. [NOTICE AND HEARING REQUIREMENTS.] The
commissioner may deny, suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew a
certificate of registration or licensure only under chapter 14.
Sec. 8. [81A.08] [TEMPORARY REGISTRATION.]
The commissioner may issue a temporary certificate of
registration while an application for registration or renewal of
registration is pending.
Sec. 9. [81A.09] [REGISTRATION AND RENEWAL FEES.]
An application for registration must be accompanied by a
$500 fee. An application for renewal of registration must be
accompanied by a $400 fee.
Sec. 10. [81A.10] [FORM OF CONTRACT.]
Subdivision 1. [REQUIRED AUTHENTICATION.] An agency
contract must be in a record, signed or otherwise authenticated
by the parties.
Subd. 2. [CONTENTS.] An agency contract must state or
contain:
(1) the amount and method of calculating the consideration
to be paid by the student athlete for services to be provided by
the athlete agent under the contract and any other consideration
the athlete agent has received or will receive from any other
source for entering into the contract or for providing the
services;
(2) the name of any person not listed in the application
for registration or renewal of registration who will be
compensated because the student athlete signed the agency
contract;
(3) a description of any expenses that the student athlete
agrees to reimburse;
(4) a description of the services to be provided to the
student athlete;
(5) the duration of the contract; and
(6) the date of execution.
Subd. 3. [NOTICE.] An agency contract must contain, in
close proximity to the signature of the student athlete, a
conspicuous notice in boldface type in capital letters stating:
WARNING TO STUDENT ATHLETE
IF YOU SIGN THIS CONTRACT:
(1) YOU MAY LOSE YOUR ELIGIBILITY TO COMPETE AS A STUDENT
ATHLETE IN YOUR SPORT;
(2) IF YOU HAVE AN ATHLETIC DIRECTOR, WITHIN 72 HOURS AFTER
ENTERING INTO THIS CONTRACT, BOTH YOU AND YOUR ATHLETE AGENT
MUST NOTIFY YOUR ATHLETIC DIRECTOR; AND
(3) YOU MAY CANCEL THIS CONTRACT WITHIN 14 DAYS AFTER
SIGNING IT. CANCELLATION OF THIS CONTRACT MAY NOT REINSTATE
YOUR ELIGIBILITY.
Subd. 4. [VOIDABILITY.] An agency contract that does not
conform to this section is voidable by the student athlete. If
a student athlete voids an agency contract, the student athlete
is not required to pay any consideration under the contract or
to return any consideration received from the athlete agent to
induce the student athlete to enter into the contract.
Subd. 5. [RECORD TO STUDENT ATHLETE.] The athlete agent
shall give a record of the signed or otherwise authenticated
agency contract to the student athlete at the time of execution.
Sec. 11. [81A.11] [NOTICE TO EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION.]
Subdivision 1. [BY ATHLETE AGENT.] Within 72 hours after
entering into an agency contract or before the next scheduled
athletic event in which the student athlete may participate,
whichever occurs first, the athlete agent must give notice in a
record of the existence of the contract to the athletic director
of the educational institution at which the student athlete is
enrolled or at which the athlete agent has reasonable grounds to
believe the student athlete intends to enroll.
Subd. 2. [BY STUDENT ATHLETE.] Within 72 hours after
entering into an agency contract or before the next athletic
event in which the student athlete may participate, whichever
occurs first, the student athlete must inform the athletic
director of the educational institution at which the student
athlete is enrolled that he or she has entered into an agency
contract. The commissioner has no enforcement authority with
respect to a violation of this subdivision by a student athlete.
Sec. 12. [81A.12] [STUDENT ATHLETE'S RIGHT TO CANCEL.]
Subdivision 1. [GENERALLY.] A student athlete may cancel
an agency contract by giving notice of the cancellation to the
athlete agent in a record within 14 days after the contract is
signed.
Subd. 2. [NONWAIVABILITY.] A student athlete may not waive
the right to cancel an agency contract.
Subd. 3. [EFFECT.] If a student athlete cancels an agency
contract, the student athlete is not required to pay any
consideration under the contract or to return any consideration
received from the athlete agent to induce the student athlete to
enter into the contract.
Sec. 13. [81A.13] [REQUIRED RECORDS.]
Subdivision 1. [RETENTION.] An athlete agent must retain
the following records for a period of five years:
(1) the name and address of each individual represented by
the athlete agent;
(2) any agency contract entered into by the athlete agent;
and
(3) any direct costs incurred by the athlete agent in the
recruitment or solicitation of a student athlete to enter into
an agency contract.
Subd. 2. [INSPECTION RIGHTS.] Records required by
subdivision 1 to be retained are open to inspection by the
commissioner during normal business hours.
Sec. 14. [81A.14] [PROHIBITED CONDUCT.]
Subdivision 1. [CONDUCT INTENDED TO INDUCE A STUDENT
ATHLETE TO ENTER INTO AN AGENCY CONTRACT.] An athlete agent,
with the intent to induce a student athlete to enter into an
agency contract, may not:
(1) give any materially false or misleading information or
make a materially false promise or representation;
(2) furnish anything of value to a student athlete before
the student athlete enters into the agency contract; or
(3) furnish anything of value to any individual other than
the student athlete or another registered athlete agent.
Subd. 2. [OTHER INTENTIONAL CONDUCT.] An athlete agent may
not intentionally:
(1) initiate contact with a student athlete unless
registered under sections 81A.01 to 81A.21;
(2) refuse or fail to retain or permit inspection of the
records required to be retained by section 81A.13;
(3) fail to register when required by section 81A.04;
(4) provide materially false or misleading information in
an application for registration or renewal of registration;
(5) predate or postdate an agency contract; or
(6) fail to notify a student athlete before the student
athlete signs or otherwise authenticates an agency contract for
a particular sport that the signing or authentication may make
the student athlete ineligible to participate as a student
athlete in that sport.
Subd. 3. [MISCONDUCT OF ATHLETE AGENTS.] An athlete agent
must not violate section 325E.33.
Sec. 15. [81A.15] [CRIMINAL PENALTIES.]
An athlete agent who violates section 81A.14 is guilty of a
gross misdemeanor.
Sec. 16. [81A.16] [CIVIL REMEDIES.]
Subdivision 1. [PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION BY EDUCATIONAL
INSTITUTION.] An educational institution has a right of action
against an athlete agent or a former student athlete for damages
caused by a violation of sections 81A.01 to 81A.21. In an
action under this section, the court may award costs and
reasonable attorney's fees.
Subd. 2. [DAMAGES.] Damages of an educational institution
under subdivision 1 include losses and expenses incurred
because, as a result of the conduct of an athlete agent or
former student athlete, the educational institution was injured
by a violation of sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 or was penalized,
disqualified, or suspended from participation in athletics by a
national association for the promotion and regulation of
athletics, by an athletic conference, or by reasonable
self-imposed disciplinary action taken to mitigate sanctions
likely to be imposed by such an organization.
Subd. 3. [ACCRUAL OF ACTION.] A right of action under this
section does not accrue until the educational institution
discovers, or by the exercise of reasonable diligence would have
discovered, the violation by the athlete agent or former student
athlete.
Subd. 4. [SEVERAL LIABILITY.] Any liability of the athlete
agent or the former student athlete under this section is
several and not joint.
Subd. 5. [OTHER RIGHTS, REMEDIES, OR DEFENSES.] Sections
81A.01 to 81A.21 do not restrict rights, remedies, or defenses
of any person under law or equity.
Sec. 17. [81A.17] [ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY.]
The commissioner may assess a civil penalty against an
athlete agent not to exceed $25,000 for a violation of sections
81A.01 to 81A.21, in accordance with chapters 14 and 45.
Sec. 18. [81A.18] [UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND
CONSTRUCTION.]
In applying and construing this uniform act, consideration
must be given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with
respect to its subject matter among states that enact it.
Sec. 19. [81A.19] [ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES IN GLOBAL AND
NATIONAL COMMERCE ACT.]
Sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 governing the legal effect,
validity, or enforceability of electronic records or signatures,
and of contracts formed or performed with the use of such
records or signatures are intended to conform to the
requirements of section 102 of the Electronic Signatures in
Global and National Commerce Act, Public Law Number 106-229, 114
Stat. 464 (2000), and supersede, modify, and limit the
Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act.
Sec. 20. [81A.20] [SEVERABILITY.]
If any provision of sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 or its
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of
sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 which can be given effect without the
invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions
of sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 are severable.
Sec. 21. [81A.21] [EFFECT ON OTHER LAW.]
Sections 81A.01 to 81A.21 do not limit the applicability of
section 325E.33.
Sec. 22. [APPROPRIATION.]
$30,000 is appropriated from the general fund in fiscal
year 2003 to the commissioner of commerce for purposes of this
act. The general fund base in fiscal year 2004 is $21,000, and
in fiscal year 2005 is $22,000.
Sec. 23. [EFFECTIVE DATE.]
Sections 1 to 22 are effective January 1, 2003.
Presented to the governor April 9, 2002
Signed by the governor April 10, 2002, 3:10 p.m.
Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes