Helen Dooley focuses her practice on transactions, commercial contracts, and business counseling, with particular emphasis on the sports and entertainment industries.
Most recently, Helen was General Counsel and Senior VP at Gersh Sports (formerly Tandem Sports + Entertainment), where she served as a talent representative and as the sole legal advisor to the full-service sports and entertainment agency. Helen has represented elite athletes and sports executives in a range of commercial matters, including endorsement, sponsorship, licensing, and advertising agreements with national and multinational companies. She has negotiated agreements with global brands such as Nike, Adidas, Amazon, and Gatorade. She has also structured production, option, and life-rights agreements with streaming platforms, including HBO and Amazon.
Helen’s clients have included NBA stars Jeremy Sochan, Jarrett Allen, Desmond Bane, Ja Morant, and Jeremy Lin, as well as Hall of Famers Ray Allen, Tamika Catchings, Tim Duncan, Vince Carter, Dominique Wilkins, and Grant Hill.
Helen began her legal career at Williams & Connolly after clerking in the federal courts. In her first stint at Williams & Connolly, Helen advised a range of businesses—such as startups, nonprofits, and tech companies—on M&As, commercial transactions, corporate governance, compensation, and HR issues. She also represented NBA athletes, high-profile politicians, and acclaimed authors in contract negotiations.
Helen has extensive experience advising clients on complex business transactions, including private equity investments, commercial real estate, multi-family real estate, and sports franchise acquisitions. Her work includes transactions involving the Atlanta Hawks, Orlando City/Pride Soccer Clubs, Baltimore Orioles, and LA Clippers. She also counsels clients on intellectual property, trademark, and Name Image Likeness (NIL) issues.
In addition to her transactional practice, Helen regularly advises boards of directors and senior executives on corporate governance, risk management, employment matters, and executive compensation. She has also negotiated employment contracts for NBA team executives and collegiate head coaches.
Helen is Board President of Rising for Justice, a nonprofit legal services and clinical legal education organization, where she also counsels on governance and collective bargaining matters.
Helen graduated magna cum laude from Duke University and received her J.D. from Duke University School of Law.