February 17, 2005

Talking baseball

Robert A. DuPuy

Robert A. DuPuy, Major League Baseball (MLB) president and chief operating officer, delivered the Pope & John Lecture on Professionalism earlier this month at the Law School. Speaking to a packed Lincoln Hall, DuPuy shared insights from his tenure as baseball’s legal counselor and chief negotiator. He made the point that the distinctive nature of professional sports presents a complicated legal landscape. "Baseball reflects society," he said, "but not in the court system." Teams battle each other on the field but share a partnership off, which is unlike any other business industry, he noted. DuPuy referred to several high profile issues, such as the Pete Rose gambling scandal and steroid testing, as case studies of compromised ethics and professionalism. After his talk, he fielded questions on the public financing of ball parks, MLB's global development and the integrity of the record books in the face of rampant drug use allegations. Hear the complete lecture online at www.northwestern.edu/shared/cms/bin/speaker/2005/02/DuPuy.mov.