RALEIGH, N.C. — Update: The order that gives public school athletes in North Carolina the legal right to earn compensation off their name, image and likeness (NIL) was signed into effect Monday by Wake County Superior Court Judge Graham Shirley.
“It’s been a long and hard fight, but we are grateful to God that justice has been served, not only for Faizon but for all public high school students in North Carolina,” Rolanda Brandon, the mother of Faizon Brandon, said in a statement. “We want to thank our lawyers, Mike Ingersoll and Matthew Tilley, and the entire team at Womble Bond Dickinson for working so diligently on this case for us. We would also like to thank our family, friends, community, and all of those who have offered support during our time of waiting for this decision. We humbly appreciate you all.”
ORIGINAL STORY
The battle between North Carolina High School athletes and the North Carolina Board of Education over Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) has been ongoing for over a year. In August, Grimsley High School 5-Star Quarterback Faizon Brandon and his family filed a lawsuit against the North Carolina Board of Education over their ban on NIL.
In today's sports landscape. High-profile athletes can cash in on NIL before they hear their name called in whatever professional league of their dreams. The concept of NIL started on the collegiate level back in 2019, and then quickly spread to the high school level nationwide.
In May of 2023, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) passed guidelines that would have allowed student-athletes to begin marketing their name, image and likeness starting in July. The NCHSAA lost the ability to enact those changes after Senate Bill 452 stripped the athletic association of many of its powers and instead gave the responsibility of creating NIL guidelines to the Board of Education (NCBOE).
Ultimately, on June 6, the NCBOE voted to ban all public school student-athletes from signing deals for the use of their name, image and likeness in exchange for compensation.
However, today, Wake County Superior Court Judge Graham Shirley ruled in favor of the Brandon family in turn reversing the NCBOE's decision to prohibit athletes from capitalizing on NIL.
So that means, high-profile high school athletes like Grimsley's Brandon, Reidsville's Kendre Harrison, or West Forsyth's Pierre Dean Jr. can be a part of the first class of NCHSAA athletes who are able to take advantage of NIL.
According to Judge Shirley's ruling, the new NIL policy could go into effect by fall of the 2025-2026 school year. However, the change will not take effect until after a written order is signed, which could happen in the next few weeks.