Chapter 246
2008 -- H 7337
SUBSTITUTE A
Enacted 07/05/08
A N A C T
RELATING
TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS - ATHLETIC AGENTS
Introduced
By: Representatives Schadone, Winfield, Brien, Rice, and Corvese
Date
Introduced: February 05, 2008
It is enacted by the General Assembly as
follows:
SECTION 1. Chapter
5-74 of the General Laws entitled "Athlete Agents" is hereby
repealed in its entirety.
CHAPTER 5-74
Athlete Agents
5-74-1.
Definitions. -- For the purposes of this chapter:
(1)
"Agent contract" means any contract or agreement under which an
athlete authorizes
an athlete agent to negotiate or to solicit on
behalf of the athlete with one or more professional
sports teams for the employment of the athlete
by one or more professional sports teams, in the
sport or sports in which the athlete is
performing at the intercollegiate level.
(2)
"Athlete agent" means any person who, for compensation, either now or
in the future,
directly or indirectly recruits or solicits an
athlete to enter into an agent contract, professional
sports services contract or financial services
contract with that person or another person, or who
for a fee procures, offers, promises or attempts
to obtain employment for an athlete with a
professional sports team.
(3)
"Financial services contract" means any contract or agreement under
which an athlete
authorizes an athlete agent to provide financial
services for the athlete, including the making and
execution of investment and other financial
decisions by the agent on behalf of the athlete.
(4)
"Office" means the office of higher education.
(5)
"Personal service contract" means the execution by an athlete of a
personal service
contract with the owner or prospective owner of
a professional sports team for the purposes of
future athletic services is equivalent to
employment with a professional sports team.
(6)
"Student athlete" means an individual who is enrolled in or has indicated
in writing
the intention to enroll in an institution of
higher education in the state of Rhode Island.
5-74-2.
Registration with the office of higher education. -- An athlete
agent shall
register annually with the office of higher
education before the athlete agent may contact an
athlete either directly or indirectly, or enter
into a contract with a student athlete who attends a
college or university in the state. The annual
fee for the registration shall be one hundred dollars
($100).
5-74-3.
Disclosure statement required. -- (a) Upon registration, the
athlete agent shall
submit to the office of higher education and to
every institution of higher education in the state
with an athletic program a statement which shall
contain the following information:
(1) The
registrant's name and street address of the registrant's principal place of
business;
(2) The
registrant's educational background, training and experience related to serving
as
an athlete agent; and
(3) The names
and addresses of all parties who are financially interested as partners,
associates or shareholders of the business of
the registrant and all persons for whom the registrant
is working as an independent contractor.
(b) No
applicant for registration may have, in any state, within five (5) years prior
to the
date of application, been found guilty of any
felony or misdemeanor, or entered a plea of no
contest to any crime, which relates to the
registrant's practice as an athlete agent. The office of
higher education may withhold registration until
the results of the criminal record checks are
received.
5-74-4.
Financial responsibility required of registrant. -- (a) The
registrant shall
submit proof of professional liability insurance
that would cover damages in an amount no less
than one million dollars ($1,000,000); provided,
that any actual damages shall not be limited to
the amount of the liability insurance provided
in this section.
(b) If the
registrant is an attorney licensed to practice law in Rhode Island, the
registrant
may choose, in lieu of a surety bond, to submit
proof of liability insurance that would cover
damages in an amount equal to the amount set
forth in subsection (a) of this section; provided,
that any action for damages shall not be limited
to the amount of the bond or of the liability
insurance as provided in this section.
5-74-5.
Contractual provisions -- Requirements. -- (a) Every athlete
contract shall be
in writing and shall indicate the fees and
percentages to be paid to the athlete agent or corporation
which he or she represents.
(b) In the
event that a student athlete is enrolled as a student at an institution of
higher
education in Rhode Island, the athlete agent
must file a copy of the contract with the athletic
director of the institution before the contract
is signed by the student athlete.
(c) The
student athlete may rescind the contract by written notification to the athlete
agent within fifteen (15) days after the
contract is signed. The athlete's right to rescind the
contract may not be waived.
(d) All
contracts with student athletes must contain a written warning to the student
athlete regarding possible loss of collegiate
eligibility according to the regulations of the relevant
national association.
5-74-6.
Permitted contacts with student athletes. -- (a) An athlete
agent may contact a
student athlete only as provided in this
chapter. In the event that the student athlete is a minor, the
agent must initiate contact with the student
athlete's parents or legal guardians.
(b) An athlete
agent may initiate contact only with those student athletes who have
completed their collegiate eligibility
(including post-season tournaments).
(c) The
athlete agent may provide information to eligible student athletes only after
having provided the same information to the
athletic director of the institution where the student
athlete is enrolled.
(d) Each
institution of higher education in Rhode Island may sponsor athlete agent
interviews on its campus where the athlete agent
may discuss with the student athlete the
provision of legal and financial services. The
athlete agent must comply with any regulations
established by the institutional committee prior
to initiating any contact with the student athlete.
(e) An athlete
agent may contact a student athlete who has not completed his or her
collegiate eligibility only if the student
athlete initiates the contact. In such instances, the athlete
agent must give prior notice of his or her
intention to respond to the request to the athletic director
of the institution where the student athlete is
enrolled.
5-74-7.
Prohibited acts. -- An athlete agent shall not:
(1) Publish or
cause to be published any false, fraudulent, or misleading information,
representation, notice, or advertisement or give
any false information or make any false promises
or representations concerning any employment to
any person;
(2) Divide fees
with or receive compensation from a person or entity exempt under this
act or a professional sports league or franchise
or its representative or employee;
(3) Enter into
any agreement, written or oral with any employee of the institution of
higher education where the student athlete is
enrolled, by which the athlete agent offers anything
in return for the referral of any clients by the
employee;
(4) Offer
anything of value to induce an athlete to enter into an agreement by which the
athlete agent will represent the athlete; or
(5) Except as
otherwise provided by this chapter, directly contact an athlete who is
participating in any intercollegiate sport until
after completion of the athlete's last intercollegiate
contest and may not enter into an oral or
written agreement that the athlete agent will represent
the athlete before the athlete's last
intercollegiate contest.
5-74-8.
Actions for damages by institutions of higher learning -- Damages and civil
penalties. -- (a) An institution of
higher education, which is adversely affected by actions of an
athlete agent, shall be entitled to bring a
civil action against an athlete agent for damages. For the
purposes of this section, an institution of
higher education shall be deemed to be adversely
affected, if, because of the unlawful activities
of the athlete agent, the institution is disqualified or
suspended from participation in intercollegiate
sports contests by a national association for the
promotion and regulation of intercollegiate
athletics and, because of that disqualification or
suspension, the institution:
(1) Loses
revenue from media coverage of sports contests;
(2) Loses the
right to grant athletic scholarships in the sport affected;
(3) Loses the
right to recruit athletes; or
(4) Otherwise
suffers an adverse financial impact.
(b) An
institution that prevails in a suit brought under this section shall be
entitled to
recover:
(1) Actual and
punitive damages;
(2) Exemplary
damages;
(3) Costs of
court; and
(4) Reasonable
attorney's fees.
(c) The
recovery of damages shall not be limited by the amount of the surety bond or
the
liability insurance.
(d) An athlete
agent who violates this chapter may be assessed a civil penalty by the
department of business regulation in an amount
not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000).
(e) Any
athlete agent who violates any provision of this chapter shall be subject to
forfeiture of any right of repayment for
anything of value received by the student athlete as any
inducement to enter into a contract.
(f) (1) Any
athlete agent who violates any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction, may be imprisoned
for not more than one year, or fined not
more than five hundred dollars ($500), or both.
(2) Any
athlete agent who shall violate any provision of this chapter may also have his
or
her registration suspended and/or revoked.
5-74-9. Persons
exempt. -- This chapter shall not be construed to require any
attorney-at-
law licensed by the supreme court of this state
to register as an athlete agent under this chapter;
provided, that the attorney retains an active
policy of professional liability insurance for the
minimum amount of one million dollars
($1,000,000) in coverage.
5-74-10.
Severability. -- If a provision of this chapter or its
application to any person or
circumstances is held invalid, the invalidity
shall not affect other provisions or applications of the
chapter which can be given effect without the
invalid provision or applications, and to this end
the provisions of this chapter are declared to
be severable.
SECTION 2. Title 5
of the General Laws entitled "Businesses and Professions" is hereby
amended by adding thereto the following chapter:
CHAPTER 74.1
UNIFORM ATHLETE AGENTS ACT
5-74.1-1. [Reserved].
5-74.1-2.
Definitions. -- As used in this chapter:
(1) “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.
(2) “Athlete agent”
means an individual who enters into an agency contract with a
student athlete or, directly or indirectly,
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.
(3) “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.
(4) “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.
(5)
“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.
(6)
“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.
(7) “Person”
means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership,
limited liability company, association, joint
venture, government, governmental subdivision,
agency, or instrumentality, public corporation,
or any other legal or commercial entity.
(8)
“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.
(9) “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.
(10) “Registration”
means registration as an athlete agent pursuant to this chapter.
(11) “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.
(12) “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.
5-74.1-3.
Service of process -- Subpoenas. -- (a) By acting as an athlete
agent in this
state, a nonresident individual appoints the
Rhode Island secretary of state 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.
(b) The Rhode Island
secretary of state may issue subpoenas for any material that is
relevant to the administration of this chapter.
5-74.1-4.
Athlete agents – Registration required – Void contracts. -- (a)
Except as
otherwise provided in subsection (b), an individual
may not act as an athlete agent in this state
without holding a certificate of registration
under section 5-74.1-6 or section 5-74.1-8.
(b) 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 (7) days after an initial act as an athlete agent, the individual submits
an
application for registration as an athlete agent
in this state.
(c) 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.
5-74.1-5.
Registration as athlete agent – Form -- Requirements. -- (a) An
applicant
for registration shall submit an application for
registration to the secretary of state in a form
prescribed by the secretary of state. An application
filed under this section is a public record. The
application must be in the name of an individual
and, except as otherwise provided in subsection
(b) herein, 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 (5) 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 address of three (3) 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 (5)
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 shares 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 (5%) or greater;
(8) whether the
applicant or any person named pursuant to subdivision 5 –74.1-5(a)(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 pursuant to subdivision 5-74.1-5(a)(7)
has made a false, misleading,
deceptive, or fraudulent representation;
(10) any
instance in which the conduct of the applicant or any person named pursuant to
subdivision 5-74.1-5(a)(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 pursuant to subdivision 5-74.1-5(a)(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 pursuant to
subdivision 5-74.1-5(a)(7) as an athlete agent
in any state.
(b) 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 pursuant to subsection
5-74.1-5(a). The secretary of state shall 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 (6) 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.
5-74.1-6.
Certificate of registration; issuance or denial; renewal. -- (a)
Except as
otherwise provided in subsection (b) herein the
secretary of state shall issue a certificate of
registration to an individual who complies with
subsection 5-74.1-5(a) or whose application has
been accepted under subsection 5-74.1-5(b).
(b) The
secretary of state may refuse to issue a certificate of registration if the
secretary
of state 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 secretary of
state 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 5-74.1-14;
(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.
(c) In making a
determination under subsection (b) herein, the secretary of state 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.
(d) An athlete
agent may apply to renew a registration by submitting an application for
renewal in a form prescribed by the secretary of
state. An application filed under this section is a
public record. 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.
(e) 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
pursuant to subsection (d) herein, may file a
copy of the application for renewal and a valid
certificate of registration or licensure from
the other state. The secretary of state shall 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 (6) 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.
(f) A
certificate of registration or a renewal of a registration is valid for two (2)
years.
(g) Upon the
secretary of state’s approval of any registration for an athlete agent, the
secretary of state’s office will notify the
athletic director of any institution of higher education
within the state of Rhode Island that
participates in intercollegiate athletics at the Division I, II, or
III level by providing that office with a copy
of the agent’s registration and disclosure statements.
5-74.1-7.
Suspension, revocation, or refusal to renew registration. -- (a) The
secretary
of state may suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew
a registration for conduct that would have
justified denial of registration under
subsection 5-74.1-5(b).
(b) The
secretary of state may deny, suspend, revoke or refuse to renew a certificate
of
registration or licensure only after proper
notice and an opportunity for a hearing.
5-74.1-8.
Temporary registration. -- The secretary of state may issue a
temporary
certificate of registration while an application
for registration or renewal of registration is
pending.
5-74.1-9.
Registration and renewal fees. -- An application for registration or
renewal of
registration must be accompanied by a fee in the
following amount:
(1) fifty dollars
($50.00) for an initial application for registration;
(2) fifty
dollars ($50.00) for an application for registration based upon a certificate
of
registration or licensure issued by another
state;
(3) twenty-five
dollars ($25.00) for an application for renewal of registration; or
(4) twenty-five
dollars ($25.00) for an application for renewal of registration based upon
an application for renewal of registration or
licensure submitted in another state.
5-74.1-10. Required
form of contract. -- (a) An agency contract must be in a record,
signed or otherwise authenticated by the
parties.
(b) 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 provided to the student athlete;
(5) the
duration of the contract; and
(6) the date of
execution.
(c) 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 seventy-two (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 fourteen (14) days after signing it. Cancellation
of this contract may not reinstate your
eligibility.
(d) 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.
(e) The athlete
agent shall give a record of the signed or otherwise authenticated agency
contract to the student athlete at the time of
execution.
5-74.1-11.
Notice to educational institution. -- (a) Within seventy-two (72)
hours after entering into an oral or written
agency contract or before the next scheduled athletic
event in which the student athlete may
participate, whichever occurs first, the athlete agent shall
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 the athlete agent has reasonable grounds to
believe the student athlete intends to enroll.
(b) Within
seventy-two (72) hours after entering into an oral or written agency contract
or before the next athletic event in which the
student athlete may participate, whichever occurs
first, the student athlete shall 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.
5-74.1-12.
Student athlete’s right to cancel. -- (a) A student athlete may
cancel an
agency contract by giving notice of the
cancellation to the athlete agent in a record within
fourteen (14) days after the contract is signed.
(b) A student
athlete may not waive the right to cancel an agency contract.
(c) 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.
5-74.1-13.
Required records. -- (a) An athlete agent shall retain the following
records
for a period of five (5) 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.
(b) Records required
by subsection (a) above to be retained are open to inspection by the
secretary of state during normal business hours.
5-74.1-14.
Prohibited conduct. -- (a) 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.
(b) An athlete
agent may not intentionally:
(1) initiate
contract with a student athlete unless registered under this chapter;
(2) refuse or
fail to retain or permit inspection of the records required to be retained by
section 5-74.1-13;
(3) fail to
register when required by section 5-74.1-4;
(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.
5-74.1-14.1.
Permitted contacts with student athletes. -- (a) An athlete agent
may: (1)
contact a student athlete only as provided in
this chapter. In the event that the student athlete is a
minor, the agent must initiate contact with the
student athlete’s parents or legal guardians.
(2) Initiate
contact only with those student athletes who have completed their collegiate
eligibility (including post-season tournaments).
(3) Provide
information to eligible student athletes only after having provided the same
information to the athletic director of the institution
where the student athlete is enrolled.
(4) Contact a
student athlete who has not completed his or her collegiate eligibility only if
the student athlete initiates the contact. In
such instances, the athlete agent must give prior notice
of his or her intention to respond to the
request to the athletic director of the institution where the
athlete is enrolled.
(b) Each
institution of higher education in Rhode Island may sponsor athlete agent
interviews on it campus where the athlete agent
may discuss with the student athlete the provision
of legal and financial services. The athlete
agent must comply with any regulations established
by the institutional committee prior to
initiating any contact with the student athlete.
5-74.1-15.
Criminal penalties. -- An athlete agent who violates section 5-74.1-14
is
guilty of a misdemeanor.
5-74.1-16.
Civil remedies. -- (a) An educational institution has a right of
action against
an athlete agent or a former student athlete for
damages caused by a violation of this chapter. In
an action under this section, the court may
award to the prevailing party costs and reasonable
attorneys' fees.
(b) Damages of
an educational institution under subsection (a) herein 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 this chapter 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.
(c) 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.
(d) Any
liability of the athlete agent or the former student athlete under this section
is
several and not joint.
(e) This
chapter does not restrict rights, remedies, or defenses of any person under law
or
equity.
5-74.1-17.
Administrative penalty. – The secretary of state may assess a civil penalty
against an athlete agent not to exceed
twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for a violation of
this chapter.
5-74.1-18.
[Reserved].
5-74.1-19.
Electronic signatures in global and national commerce act. -- The
provisions of this chapter 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 conform to the requirements of
section 102 of the Electronic Signatures in Global and
National Commerce Act, Pub. L. No. 106-229, 114
Stat. 464 (2000), and supersede, modify, and
limit the Electronic Signatures in Global and
National Commerce Act.
5-74.1-20.
Severability. -- If any provision of this chapter or its application
to any
person or circumstance is held invalid, the
invalidity does not affect other provisions or
applications of this chapter which can be given
effect without the invalid provision or application,
and to this end the provisions of this chapter
are severable.
SECTION 3. This
act shall take effect upon passage.
=======
LC00633/SUB A
=======