Farrer & Co Advise the Volvo Ocean Race, Organisers of the World’s Premier Ocean Race.
Farrer & Co have advised the Volvo Ocean Race since 2002 on the legal and commercial complexities of preparing and staging the world’s premier round-the-world ocean race which started on 12 November 2005 and is set to race around the world until July 2006.
Farrer & Co’s involvement includes advising the organisers on new media and software deals; satellite and terrestrial airtime acquisition; production, distribution and broadcasting of live, documentary and news footage; sponsorship; intellectual property, development, protection and leverage; logistics; commercial participation; crew member agreements; port arrangements; and other race specific legal requirements including insurance and control of risk and liability.
Robert Clinton, Senior Partner and Head of Farrer & Co’s Sports group said: “We are thrilled to be involved in the Volvo Ocean Race and to have been able to use our extensive sports, sponsorship and commercial expertise in such an exciting, innovative and complex venture. We wish the event every success”.
Glenn Bourke, the Volvo Ocean Race CEO, said: “Farrer & Co have provided us with an experienced legal team who can move swiftly and deal with highly complex legal requirements such as this. We are extremely well supported by the expertise, understanding and commercial intelligence that Farrer & Co brings to the Race. Their detail, pragmatism and urgency have helped immensely and have left us in a very strong position to move forward with the Race.”
Robert Datnow led the Farrer & Co team which included intellectual property lawyer Paul Jones and Commercial lawyer Anthony Turner.
For more information, please contact:
Robert Datnow at Farrer & Co on +44 (0)20 7917 7494 (rad@farrer.co.uk).
Notes to Editors
Farrer & Co is a mid-sized London law firm with around 300 staff, 61 of whom are partners. We offer wide-ranging specialist advice to a large number of prominent commercial private and institutional clients.
Farrer & Co is recognised as a leading firm for both sports law and sponsorship work by the Legal 500 and Chambers directories. The Sports group provides clients with innovative, commercial and practical advice on a wide range of issues to enable them to achieve their longer term strategic and business goals. The group has recently produced a briefing on the Transnational Legal Issues Arising in International Yacht Racing which outlines the key legal aspects for the major players involved in yacht racing. To view this and other sports-related articles, please visit our website: http://www.farrer.co.uk/Default.aspx?sID=834
The Volvo Ocean Race is a round-the-world yacht race featuring nine offshore legs and a series of in-shore events. The 2005 – 2006 race started in Vigo, Galicia (Northern Spain) on 12 November 2005, after the first in-shore race on 5 November in Sanxenxo, Galicia. The stop-over ports are Cape Town, Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro, Baltimore/Annapolis, Portsmouth and Rotterdam and the finish port of Gothenburg in Sweden.
The syndicates taking part in the Race are ABN AMRO (with two boats); Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean; movistar; Brasil 1; Sunergy and Friends and Ericsson.