Especially if you work for the NCAA.
The NCAA reported spending $63.5 million in legal fees during the fiscal year that ended August 2025, according to its latest tax return, bringing its five-year total spending on outside counsel to $292.6 million.
The biggest beneficiary was law firm Wilkinson Stekloff, which received nearly $19.6 million in FY25. The firm’s partner Rakesh Kilaru has served as lead counsel for the association in the House v. NCAA antitrust litigation that was resolved with a court-approved settlement in June 2025.
Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner was the second-highest-paid law firm, receiving $7.3 million.
The NCAA also continued to incur substantial litigation costs beyond attorney fees. Its latest tax filing, a public copy of which was released Friday, disclosed $372.3 million in legal settlements during FY25. Combined with the landmark House settlement, the association has spent more than $3 billion in legal settlement costs over the past two fiscal cycles.
Half of that was spent on Brendan Sorsby alone. I kid, I kid. But, that’s a lot of money that could’ve been diverted to a conference’s NIL funds, amirite?
Makes me wonder if Sports Management programs are just going to be shuttered or reformed as a Sports Law program, because that seems that’s where the real money in college sports is nowadays.
It’s not the Sixty Million, it’s that they have the Sixty Million…
“Half of that was spent on Brendan Sorsby alone.” Wanna bet?
Do the schools (i.e. the parents stroking the checks) pay that?
I need to figure out how I can bill $19 million to one client in a year.
What’s Vegas think about Sorsby’s odds of playing somewhere next year?
I assume you’re being sarcastic, but I’m pretty sure there are gambling sites that will set odds and let you bet on that.