The Australian & New Zealand Sports Law Association

Webinar: How to Become an International Sports Lawyer - 

Insights from the Global Stage

Wednesday, 13 May - 9.00am to 10.00am (CEST) / 5.00pm to 6.00pm (AEST)

The pursuit of a career in international sports law and management necessitates a complex navigation of cross-border regulations, multi-jurisdictional compliance, and large-scale event operations. To address these professional challenges, ANZSLA is pleased to present the second edition of the "How to Become an International Sports Lawyer" series.

Hosted by one of ANZSLA's first sport scholars, this webinar brings together four practitioners from Australia and New Zealand working or have worked in high-level roles within international federations, major event organisers, and global professional leagues. The panel intentionally bridges the gap between law and operations; featuring a non-practising lawyer in a senior executive role and an integrity expert with a distinct investigative background, both of whom work alongside legal teams to navigate the global sporting framework. The session is designed to provide general career advice on entering the global sports scene while offering a substantive analysis of the legal and operational frameworks required to succeed at the pinnacle of global sport. Collectively, our speakers bring experience from engagements with the IOC, World Athletics, World Rugby, FIBA, the NBA, ITF, World Netball, FIS, CAS, and WADA.

This free webinar is open to ANZSLA members only (members must login to the website to gain access). If you are not currently an ANZSLA member and would like to join now to access this webinar and the other many benefits of membership, please visit the website via the following LINK.  There is currently a special discounted joining fee of 50% off to cover the remaining membership period, expiring 30 June.  

If you haven't already done so, register now via the link below!

Chair: Ling Goh (MSiArb,  Singapore Advocate & Solicitor, Martens Rechtsanwälte)

As an alumni of University of Melbourne and an ANZSLA Sport Scholarship recipient in 2021, Ling is an Advocate and Solicitor in Singapore working in Switzerland in international sports law. Ling is an Arbitrator for Sport Resolutions (UK) and sets regularly as an independent tribunal member for the International Tennis Federation. She has extensive experience as an Ad Hoc Clerk at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and works as Tribunal Counsel at the Basketball Arbitral Tribunal (BAT). Beyond the law, she is a former high-performance athlete, having represented Singapore in multiple Asian Games and SEA Games, and still holds six national records.

Ian Scott (Senior Partner, Atsumi & Sakai, Tokyo)

Ian Scott is a Senior Partner at Atsumi & Sakai in Tokyo and a globally recognised sports lawyer and operations specialist with over 25 years’ experience in international sport. Originally from Australia, he has built his career across Asia, Europe and Oceania, advising major sporting bodies and delivering some of the world’s largest events.

He has served as Legal Counsel to the IOC for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and as Head of Legal and Rights Protection for the Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan. More recently, he has led rights protection and compliance programmes for FIBA for the Basketball World Cup 2023 across three countries, as well as for the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 2025 and the Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics. He has also recently been involved in the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026.

In addition to his legal practice, he has held senior executive roles in sports operations, including Managing Director of World Rugby’s Japan entity and General Manager for Rugby World Cup 2019, overseeing large-scale international tournament delivery. He is also an arbitrator at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

He regularly advises international federations, event organisers and commercial partners on major sporting event operations, rights protection, compliance, and international sports governance.

He was inducted into The Legal 500 Hall of Fame (Japan, Sports Law) in 2025 and has received leading industry recognition in this field for over 15 years.

Dr Leanne O'Leary (Lecturer, Maynooth University, Ireland/Solicitor, England and Wales)

Dr Leanne O’Leary is an Assistant Professor/Lecturer and dual qualified solicitor in New Zealand, and in England/Wales.  She commenced her legal career as a barrister and solicitor in NZ, working at law firms, Martelli McKegg, and Simpson Grierson, in Auckland, before leaving for the UK on her “OE”.

After a variety of legal roles, including as a paralegal on the Shipman Inquiry, a public inquiry that investigated the actions of Harold Shipman, the UK’s most prolific serial killer, Leanne qualified as a solicitor in England/Wales and joined multi-national law firm (then) Eversheds LLP, in the employment law team at the firm’s office in Leeds.

Leanne completed her PhD at Trinity College, Dublin, on the employment of professional rugby league players in the Super League, and now works at a university in Ireland, while also resolving disputes in the sports industry. Leanne has published in leading sports law and employment law journals, including the Industrial Law Journal, The International Sports Law Journal and the European Competition Law Review.

Leanne is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a CEDR-Accredited Mediator. She is a Member of the Premier League Judicial Panel, UK, and a member of the Fédération Internationale du Ski and Snowboard Ethics Commission, Switzerland. Leanne is also a non-executive director of Sport Dispute Solutions Ireland, a non-executive director of Table Tennis England, and is an independent member of the Governance Committee for World Netball.

Michael King (Head of Intelligence and Investigations, Athletics Integrity Unit of World Athletics)

Michael King is the Head of Intelligence and Investigations at the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) of World Athletics. The intelligence and investigations work that Michael leads covers the range of integrity threats to international athletics, including doping, competition manipulation, age manipulation, safeguarding, illegal betting, technical cheating and others. 

Prior to joining the AIU, Michael played a lead role in establishing and building the Intelligence and Investigations Department of the International Testing Agency, and was responsible for the successful delivery of the anti-doping intelligence and investigations response to the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing and the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

Michael started his career with over a decade conducting and leading intelligence and investigations activities on behalf of the Australian Government, specializing in cross-border operations and has conducted intelligence and investigations activities in over 100 countries and six continents . Michael is a member of the Steering Committee of the WADA I&I Expert Group the Sports Human Intelligence Network (SHIN) and the WADA Drafting Team for the first iteration of a stand-alone International Standard for Intelligence and Investigations (ISII), due to come into force on 1 January 2027.

Patrick Clifton (Chief Operating Officer and Company Secretary, Adelaide Football Club)

Patrick is the current Chief Operating Officer and company secretary of the Adelaide Football Club, a position he has held since 2023. The role is responsible for managing all aspects finance, legal, governance and risk, IT, and facilities. Its overarching aim is to drive results, spur growth, and increase the overall efficiency of the Club. The role is also responsible for the management and oversight of the planning, design and construction of the Club’s new $100M training and administration base, scheduled for completion in late 2026. Prior to this, Patrick was the Vice President of Player Health and Performance at the National Basketball Association (NBA), based out of New York. He is also a board member of the Yarra Junior Football League and Barbara Dicker Brain Sciences Foundation. In his spare time, Patrick is an avid marathon runner, with the aim to complete all 7 of the world’s major marathons. He also loves travelling, snow sports, scuba diving and golf.

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