NIL representation for athletes and their parents.
Endorsement contract review, revenue-sharing negotiation, NIL Go compliance, agent agreements, and disputes — for UNM Lobos, NMSU Aggies, UTEP Miners (via TX license), and NMAA-eligible high-school athletes. Parents of minor athletes welcome — see how that engagement works.
Six core NIL services.
Contract review & negotiation
Exclusivity, perpetual IP transfers, morality clauses, transfer-portal buyouts, vague payment terms.
Revenue-sharing agreements
Direct school payments under House v. NCAA. Renewal, termination, buyout clauses.
LLC & business formation
NM LLC formation, operating agreements, optional S-corp election, asset separation.
NCAA & state compliance
NIL Go review for any deal ≥ $600. UNM, NMSU, UTEP, NMAA rules. NM SB 94.
Dispute resolution
Unpaid endorsements, unauthorized use of likeness, collective non-performance, CSC arbitration.
Agent problems
NM Uniform Athlete Agents Act. Contracts with unregistered agents — void by statute. Clean termination.
Quick questions covered. Deals quoted.
Quick NIL contract questions and a compliance read before you submit to NIL Go are included in your monthly calls and reply allowance. Full negotiation of a deal, drafting a revenue-sharing or endorsement contract, or forming an LLC for your NIL business are scoped as flat-fee projects at the 25% member discount — quoted in writing before any work begins.
Agent terminations and disputes are handled under a separate engagement at member rates. For tax planning, we refer to a qualified CPA — we are not tax attorneys.
You hire the lawyer. Your child is the athlete.
A high-school athlete with an NIL deal can't legally sign their own contracts — minors don't have full capacity to contract in New Mexico. That's where you come in. Most NMAA-era NIL engagements at our firm are signed by a parent or legal guardian, with the athlete as the named subject of the work.
If your son or daughter is a New Mexico high-school athlete with a brand reaching out, a collective making an offer, or an agent sliding into their DMs, you are almost certainly the right person to bring this to a lawyer. The brand wants a signed contract. The collective wants compliance. The agent wants a long-term commission deal. None of those are conversations a 16-year-old should be navigating alone.
Below is how the engagement actually works when the client is a minor, what your role looks like during representation, and the questions that come up most often from NM parents.
How parent-on-behalf-of-athlete engagements work
Who signs the engagement letter?
For minor athletes, the parent or legal guardian signs the engagement letter as the client. The athlete is identified by name, but the contracting party — and the person we communicate with — is you.
Who signs the NIL deal?
Same answer. Brands and collectives that want to work with a minor athlete in NM should be sending contracts that name the athlete and are countersigned by a parent or guardian. If they aren't, that's a red flag we'll catch.
What does your child do?
They show up to the strategy call if it helps — and they're the ones bound to perform the deliverables. But they're not signing legal paper, and they're not on the hook for fees. You are.
What we handle on behalf of your child
- Reviewing the offer you got — endorsement, social-media deliverable, appearance, autograph, video game, anything labeled "NIL."
- Flagging the clauses that hurt minors most — perpetual likeness transfers, exclusivity that extends past graduation, morality clauses written for adults.
- NMAA compliance — keeping the deal inside the New Mexico Activities Association's NIL rules so eligibility isn't at risk.
- Negotiating with the brand or collective — so you're not the one having an awkward conversation with a marketing manager.
- Working with the agent (if there is one) — verifying the agent is registered under the NM Uniform Athlete Agents Act, which renders unregistered-agent contracts void by statute.
- Forming an LLC — when the deal volume justifies it. Owned by the athlete (or by you on their behalf), with you running the day-to-day until they're 18.
- Transition planning — what happens when your child turns 18 and starts signing on their own, and what happens if they head to a four-year school.
- Tax-flag review — we'll catch obvious tax issues and route you to a CPA we trust. We're not tax lawyers.
Common questions from parents
Will this deal mess up their eligibility?
If the deal is structured correctly, no. NMAA permits NIL activity within defined rules; the deal we red-line for you will be one that stays inside those rules. Deals offered by school personnel, deals tied to athletic performance bonuses, or deals that look like pay-for-play are different stories — we'll tell you which is which.
Can my child sign anything themselves?
In NM, minors don't have full capacity to contract. Contracts signed by a minor are generally voidable by the minor. Real-world consequence: the brand is taking on legal risk if they paper a deal directly with your kid. We make sure the contract names both the athlete and a parent/guardian, with the parent as the binding signatory.
Where does the payment go?
Usually into an account in the parent's name (or a UTMA account for the athlete's benefit), or into an LLC bank account if we've formed one. Direct-deposit into a minor's personal account creates banking and tax issues most NM banks won't touch — we'll set up the structure correctly before money moves.
What about my child's image and social media?
A surprising number of NIL contracts ask for perpetual or post-eligibility rights to your child's likeness, images, and account content. We narrow that scope — to the campaign, with a defined end date, and revocable for cause. You and your child should still own your child's face and feed five years from now.
Should we sign with the agent who called?
Almost never on the first call. NM requires athlete agents to register with the state — many calling about high-school athletes aren't. Contracts with unregistered agents are void under the NM Uniform Athlete Agents Act. We'll verify registration, read the agreement, and most often suggest a shorter, clearer arrangement than the one they sent.
Is this going to cost more than the deal pays?
Sometimes for very small deals, yes — and we'll tell you that up front on the free intro call. For meaningful NIL income, the cost of a properly reviewed contract is a fraction of a single payment, and avoids the perpetual-rights traps that bite long after the cash is spent.
What to bring to the intro call
- Any contract or offer in writing — even a DM screenshot, term sheet, or one-pager.
- Your child's school, grade, and sport — so we know which compliance regime applies (NMAA vs. NCAA).
- The name of the brand, collective, or agent — we'll cross-check against the NM agent registry before the call ends.
- Whether you've signed anything yet — even verbal commitments matter; tell us before they bite.
- Your timeline — campaigns that start next week need different pacing than seasonal deals.
You sign for yourself.
If you're a college student-athlete at UNM, NMSU, or UTEP — or a high-school senior who has already turned 18 — you sign your own engagement letter and your own NIL deals. Parents are welcome on calls if you want them there, but the client is you. Same scope of work, same flat-fee pricing, same compliance review.
UNM, NMSU, UTEP, NMAA.
Book a 15-minute call.
No charge, no obligation. We'll tell you which plan fits, what flat-fee work might apply, or whether you need a different kind of lawyer.
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