Toolson v. New York Yankees
Aaron Epping
Toolson v. New York Yankees Sparks Professional Sports Becoming Businesses
Toolson v. New York Yankees was a Supreme Court case that confirmed baseball's exemption from the antitrust law and enabled baseball to be considered a "business." Baseball was the only professional sport exempted from the law, however the Toolson v. New York Yankees case sparked more professional sport cases to follow.
"The first, Toolson v. New York Yankees (1953), affirmed that baseball was outside the purview of federal antitrust laws. Yet, in two subsequent cases, the Supreme Court ruled that the federal antitrust laws did indeed apply to boxing (United States v. International Boxing Club [1955]) and football (Radovich v. National Football League [1957]). These arguably conflicting decisions spurred the Subcommittee on Antitrust and Monopoly to hold hearings in 1958, further examining the application of federal antitrust laws to professional sports leagues as a whole."
"The first, Toolson v. New York Yankees (1953), affirmed that baseball was outside the purview of federal antitrust laws. Yet, in two subsequent cases, the Supreme Court ruled that the federal antitrust laws did indeed apply to boxing (United States v. International Boxing Club [1955]) and football (Radovich v. National Football League [1957]). These arguably conflicting decisions spurred the Subcommittee on Antitrust and Monopoly to hold hearings in 1958, further examining the application of federal antitrust laws to professional sports leagues as a whole."
Memorobilia from Supreme Court
Yankees' Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle (1953)
Yankees win 1953 World Series
Citation
"Professional Sports and Federal Antitrust Law" Recess Reading: An Occasional
Feature From The Judiciary Committee.
http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/about/history/SportsAntitrust.cfm
Feature From The Judiciary Committee.
http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/about/history/SportsAntitrust.cfm