Michigan Law student scores summer internship with Brooklyn Nets

By Jenny Whalen
U-M Law

When Carly Weiss says she’s “going to court,” she’s not referring to the judge and gavel variety. ????????????????????????????????

A rising 2L, Weiss is spending her 1L summer in New York as an intern with the general counsel’s office of the Brooklyn Nets basketball team and the Barclays Center, the team’s home arena. ????????????????????????????????

“The exciting part of working in a general counsel’s office, especially for an organization such as the Nets, which also encompasses the Barclays Center, the New York Islanders—who are moving to Brooklyn this fall—and the Nassau Coliseum, is the wide-breadth of legal work and numerous projects undertaken at any given time, across many different disciplines,” Weiss said. ????????????????????????????????

During her nine-week internship, Weiss will conduct research pertaining to legal matters surrounding the Islanders’ move to the Barclays Center (and the structural changes that will be implemented at their old arena, the Nassau Coliseum), advertising agreements set in place for the upcoming NBA and NHL seasons, trademark licensing arrangements, media partnerships, NBA/NHL compliance matters, and other legal issues related to concerts and events held at the Barclays Center. ????????????????????????????????

“I hope to be able to enhance my abilities as a developing attorney and legal researcher, applying the information I learned my first year at Michigan Law in a practical setting,” Weiss said. “This will also be my first exposure to more nuanced legal matters that are not encompassed in the broader doctrinal first-year classes, so I am excited to be able to gain a working understanding of what it actually means to be an attorney in the sports industry.”????????????????????????????????

Developing such understanding is of utmost importance to Weiss who hopes to have a legal career that encompasses the sports industry in some capacity, be it as outside counsel at a firm, or general counsel of a sports organization, league, or players association. ????????????????????????????????

“I’m most looking forward to working with a team of very successful attorneys in the sports industry, and to have the ability to soak-up as much practical knowledge first-hand about what it is actually like to be a practicing lawyer in this field,” Weiss said. “Hopefully this internship will give me a better idea about which side of the table I’d like to be on as I shape my career.”????????????????????????????????

Weiss obtained the internship with the assistance of a former Nets intern with whom she connected on LinkedIn. Internship and career postings are also available through Michigan Law’s Office of Career Planning and Symplicity.????????????????????????????????