Avoiding Immigration Pitfalls in NIL Deals: Revenue Sharing Agreements and International Student- Athletes

Ksenia Maiorova | Green and Spiegel U.S

Ksenia Maiorova graduated from the University of Tennessee, summa cum laude, in 2004 and received her Juris Doctor degree from the Berkeley School of Law in 2007. She is a Partner and Practice Group Leader for the Olympic/Individual Sports practice group at Green & Spiegel LLC, where she focuses her practice on immigration solutions for professional athletes and other sports industry professionals, as well as providing consulting services to attorneys. She is the founder of Sports Immigration Lawyers, a professional group for sports immigration practitioners, and is the founder and conference chair of the annual Sports Immigration Law Conference, currently in its 5th year. She is also the co-editor of and contributing author to AILA’s treatise “Immigration Options for Artists, Entertainers, and Athletes, 3rd Ed.”

Since 2021, Ksenia has developed expertise in the intersection of immigration law and the NCAA’s Name, Image, and Likeness regulations, providing innovative solutions for international student-athletes to maximize their NIL earning potential while being immigration compliant. Together with Amy Maldonado, Ksenia authored the book NIL x Immigration: a practical guide to NIL for international student-athletes, collegiate athletic directors, NIL collectives, agencies, and other industry stakeholders. In recognition of her work in the NIL field, Ksenia was named among the top 13 Figures to Watch in NIL in 2023 by On3. She is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale Hubbell and has been featured in national and international media as a subject matter expert on sports immigration.

Chris Richardson | BDV Solutions

A native of South Carolina, Chris is a graduate of Duke University School of Law and summa cum laude graduate of Emory University. He is an immigration attorney, consultant, and former U.S. diplomat, currently serving as the President and General Counsel of BDV Solutions. Chris served as a U.S. diplomat in Nigeria, Nicaragua, Pakistan, and Spain, managing complex diplomatic challenges and earning multiple honors, including Meritorious Honors Awards and a Superior Honors Award.

While at BDV, he has played a key role in the company’s rapid expansion and strategic growth. As part of the leadership team, he helped expand the business from a small team of six employees in Greenville, South Carolina, focused on the EB-3 visa category, into an industry leader in employment-based immigration solutions, growing into a global operation that spans multiple visa categories and employs over 225 people worldwide.

His prior experience and dedication to BDV have been essential in building strong relationships with businesses across industries such as hospitality, healthcare, manufacturing, and food service. Beyond business growth, Chris has played a crucial role in positioning BDV as a trusted leader in the field.

He has been featured in Mother Jones, Slate Magazine, Reuters, NPR, Embedded, All Things Considered, SCOTUS Blog, BBC, Georgia Public Radio, Intercept, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution. He has also been interviewed by the New York Times, CNN, and CBS. He has also written several well-received opinion columns for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Slate Magazine, Chicago Sun-Times, The Hill, the Nation and the New York Times. A co-author of the Historical Dictionary of the Civil Rights Movement (2014), Chris has lectured on the American Civil Rights Movement at universities and colleges around the world.

Stella Cohen | Haight Law Group, PC

Stella Cohen has been practicing immigration law for over 15 years and has extensive experience representing clients in a wide range of matters, including employment-based and family-based immigration, nonimmigrant visas, and consular processing. She is particularly recognized for her deep expertise in sports immigration, where she has successfully obtained visa classifications and green cards for professional athletes, coaches, and support personnel, and has represented multiple major league teams across the NBA, WNBA, and MLB. In addition to her sports practice, Ms. Cohen advises corporate clients, executives, and creative professionals on complex immigration strategies.

I. How revenue sharing/direct payments are different from third party/pre-House NIL | 1:00pm – 1:10pm

II. How is “employment” defined under immigration law? | 1:10pm – 1:20pm

III. Types of employment authorization for F-1 holders | 1:20pm – 1:30pm

IV. DHS regulations regarding securing the labor of an unauthorized alien | 1:30pm – 1:40pm

V. How immigration enforcement works: The roles of ICE, CBP, and DOS | 1:40pm – 1:50pm

VI. The consular perspective – discretionary decisions and 214b | 1:50pm – 2:00pm

Break | 2:00pm – 2:10pm

VII. Common elements in institutional rev sharing agreements and whether it’s a “royalty” | 2:10pm – 2:20pm

VIII. Risk exposure for universities and best practices for avoiding them | 2:20pm – 2:30pm

IX. Preparing for consular interviews | 2:30pm – 2:40pm

X. Alternative paths: P, O, EB-1A | 2:40pm – 2:50pm 

XI. The Last-Tear Poa case in the middle district of Louisiana | 2:50pm – 3:00pm

XII. How universities can advocate for clear guidance | 3:00pm – 3:10pm