Leigh Ernst Friestedt
Leigh Ernst Friestedt
Sports Law Attorney
Leigh Ernst Friestedt is the Founder of Equity IX, LLC, a boutique law firm that specializes in Title IX, women’s sports and education. As a former student-athlete at Brown University, Leigh is uniquely qualified to advise universities, student-athletes and coaches on legal matters surrounding Title IX, gender equity and name, image and likeness matters.
Prior to forming Equity IX, Leigh was a Mergers & Acquisitions investment banker on Wall Street at Lazard, Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ) and GE Capital. Leigh has over twelve years of M&A experience advising global companies across all sectors with a specialty in media.
Practices
Title IX – Gender Equity
Student-Athletes Rights
NCAA Rules & Regulations
Name, Image, Likeness
Education
Vanderbilt University Law School
Brown University
Holton-Arms School
Bar Admissions
New York
Education
A lifelong advocate for women’s sports, Leigh’s legal career focuses on Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972. Creating an Equal Opportunity for girls and women to play sports in school is fundamental to their success and serves as the cornerstone for Leigh’s work.
Leigh received a Juris Doctor from Vanderbilt University Law School (1996) and served on the Board of Advisors. Leigh is a graduate of Brown University (1993) where she played on the Women’s Lacrosse team earning First Team All-New England and Academic All-Ivy honors.
A graduate of Holton-Arms School (1989), Leigh served on the Board of Trustees as the Chair of Finance and was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame as a four-sport athlete. A formerly nationally ranked tennis player, Leigh continues to play tennis, soccer, surf and ski.
Title IX
Title IX
Education Amendments Act of 1972
In 1972, Congress enacted Title IX to prohibit sex-based discrimination in education.
“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”
While the original legislation did not stipulate “athletics,” Title IX has had a profound impact on high-school and intercollegiate athletics by expanding athletic opportunities for girls and women to play sports in school.
Title IX
NCAA v. House
Division I Class Action - Name, Image & Likeness ("NIL")
Leigh represented four female student-athletes in NCAA v. House $2.7 billion antitrust class action lawsuit in the Northern District Court of California. Charlotte North (Boston College/Duke Women’s Lacrosse), Mai Nirundorn (Georgia Women’s Tennis), Sarah Brooke Baker (UNC/Vanderbilt Women’s Lacrosse) and Katherine McCabe Ernst (Vanderbilt Women’s Lacrosse) objected to the House Settlement based on Title IX of the Education Amendments Act (1972) on behalf of all past, current and future DI female student-athletes.
Title IX
Landmark High-School Settlement
A.B. et al v. Hawaii Dept. of Educ. & Oahu Interscholastic Assoc.
Leigh worked pro-bono with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP on the landmark Title IX lawsuit against Hawai’i’s largest public school to ensure that girls have the same athletic opportunities as boys. Representing lead plaintiff, Ashley Badis, the civil rights class action lawsuit resulted in a landmark settlement with the Hawaii Dept. of Education and O’ahu Interscholastic Association to improve gender equity for girls sports across the state of Hawaii.
Title IX vs NCAA
A Gameplan for Championship Equity
Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law
Fifty years after the enactment of Title IX, there are still significant disparities between men’s and women’s intercollegiate athletics, most notably at the NCAA Championships. In 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in NCAA v. Smith that the NCAA was not subject to Title IX. However, Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s majority opinion left open alternative legal theories to bring the NCAA under the scope of Title IX. Leigh’s article argues that the NCAA should be covered by Title IX, and sets forth a vision of Championship Equity that affords women an Equal Opportunity to play sports.
Title IX
Cohen v. Brown University
Vanderbilt Law School Sports Symposium
Leigh was a student-athlete at Brown University when Amy Cohen, Captain of the Brown Women’s Gymnastics team, filed the landmark Title IX lawsuit against Brown alleging sex-based discrimination in athletics. Cohen v. Brown University was the first case to analyze Title IX in college athletics. Brown unsuccessfully appealed the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, and Cohen set forth a Three Part Test to define how an educational institution could achieve compliance with Title IX.
Women's Sports
SportsOgram
Digital Media Sports
Leigh created SportsOgram Digital Media Sports featuring Division I Women’s Lacrosse. Leigh has photographed, filmed and authored articles covering the top women’s lacrosse teams at the NCAA Final Four, ACC, Ivy League, Big Ten and Big East Championships. Additional action sports that Leigh covers include: sailing, tennis, surfing, skiing and wildlife in Jackson Hole, WY.
Early Recruiting
Early Recruit
The Role of Sports in Education
Leigh helped the NCAA and Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) pass landmark early recruiting legislation for Men’s and Women’s Division I Lacrosse.
Leigh’s article, Early Recruit: The Role of Sports in Education, analyzed key issues with early recruiting and documented female student-athletes featured in a film to lobby the NCAA.
Sports Articles
