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The
Sports Law & Welfare Association of India (SLAWIN) is a nonprofit, national,
professional, organization whose common goal is the understanding, advancement,
and ethical practice of, "Sports Law" in India for the promotion
of Sports, by bringing Legal Practitioners and Sports persons together.
The front pages of newspapers are a daily reminder of human folly, be
it corruption, bribery, rape, murder, Illicit sex and drug abuse.
That is why many of us bypass the news and turn to sports in search of
something more inspiring. Yet lately sports has had an uncharacteristic
run on the front page due to its own failing. Stories such as the Olympic
games bidding scandal, the Peter Korda drug doping affairs, and Cricket
series of stumbles over mach fixing, payments from bookies and Ranatunga
debacles Demonstrates the obvious-- sports has a dark side like other
affairs .
Of course, sports has always had its disputes - a notable feature of
late is the increasing and decisive role of lawyers in settling outcomes.
Further, recent victories by Arjuna Ranatunga over the International
Cricket Council and Korda over the International Tennis Federation were
widely condemned because lawyers exploited legal loopholes in the sporting
rules-book. Malcolm Speed, the Australian Cricket Board's Chief Executive,
doesn't like the fact the sport is a growth industry for lawyers; but
nowadays, he says, legal training is crucial for professional sports administrators.
In the last year alone I have handled several matters in various High
Courts and the Supreme Court of India settling the disputes for holding
the office of the Triathlon Federation of India. In which due to the lack
of legal training the matters were hanging in the several High Courts
of India. Where as on pleading in the matter I submitted before the Honorable
Supreme Court of India that "under the provisions of the Constitution
of the Indian Olympic Association there is an Arbitration clause in such
a disputes by IOA, so that the Sportsmen and Sports shall not suffer".
Agreeing the provisions of the IOA Honorable Supreme Court of India directed
the IOA to appoint an Arbitrator in the matter and settle the disputes.
Thus in compliance of the direction of the judgment of Supreme Court
of India the long battle of two groups of TFI had been resolved and the
sports show of The TFI is in the smooth sail.
Like it or not, the infiltration of law in sports is on a permanent growth
curve and the," modern sports administrators" has to rely heavily
on legal advice. "Sports Law" is a growth industry in many part
of the world .Solicitors, Attorneys and Lawyers in other countries like
America, Canada, and Australia and New Zealand and playing their prominent
roles in the growth of, "Sports Law" in their countries.
In India, "Sports Law" is very new and growing with the imaginative
idea of Dr. Amaresh Kumar, who has graduated and post graduated in Physical
Education, from the nation's premier and only University of Physical Education
& sports, "Lakshmibai National Institute of Physical Education"
Gwalior some where in the year 1995, when he was terminated illegally
from the services of this Institute and took over the Advocacy as a challenge
for his avocation. He had practiced matters related with Service, Educational,
Institutional etc. but gave a new thought to practice the cases in Sports
related matters. He had appeared in various High Courts and Supreme Court
of India and pleaded the sports law from 1995 to 1999 - till his reinstatement. |
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