North Carolina public school athletes can profit off their name, image and likeness, reversing state board policy, a Wake County judge ruled Tuesday.

Wake County Superior Court Judge Graham Shirley granted a preliminary injunction in the case involving the family of Greensboro high school football player Faizon Brandon, a top-rated recruit in the Class of 2026. The decision stops the state board’s prohibition.

The change will not take effect until after a written order is signed, Brandon family lawyer Mike Ingersoll said. It is up to Ingersoll to write the order, according to the judge. He hopes to have it done by the end of the week.

Brandon’s mother, Rolanda Brandon, filed a lawsuit in August. Brandon has committed to Tennessee.

“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 said in a statement.

#AGTG 🙌🏽 https://t.co/V3ABAllEaT

— Faizon Brandon (@faizon_brandon) October 1, 2024

Shirley ruled that the state board’s proposed permanent rule for name, image and likeness, which could go into effect at the state of the 2025-26 season, will be the new rule now.

“We are extremely happy with the Court’s well-reasoned decision today, which we believe was the right outcome,” Ingersoll said in a statement.

“In an effort to collaborate and work cooperatively, we recently proposed a consent injunction to the State Board of Education, through its attorneys, that is similar to the injunction the Court ordered from the bench today, but the State Board declined our offer to work together to find a mutual solution. Nevertheless, the correct outcome was reached today. We are proud to work with the Brandon family and are excited for our client and the opportunities he will soon be able to maximize upon entry of the Court’s written order.”

The proposed rule is still in its public comment period. Several members of the State Board of Education expressed skepticism about the rule, but voted to proceed with the permanent rule process in September. If enacted, it would have gone into effect in the 2025-26 school year.

“Today’s court order is aligned with the State Board of Education’s most recent action in this matter, which is the product of the Board’s careful deliberation,” chairman Eric Davis said in a statement. “We have not seen the final court order yet, but this could result in earlier implementation of our proposed permanent rule. Until such time as the final court order is entered, however, the temporary rules are still in effect.”

The restriction applied to all North Carolina public schools and four private parochial schools that compete in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association. Athletes at private schools that compete in a different association are allowed to be compensated for name, image and likeness.

Nearly 40 states allow high school athletes to profit off their name, image and likeness.

State lawmakers gave the state board authority to regulate name, image and likeness rules for public school athletes. But the board put in place a prohibition for the current school year. The lawsuit said that prohibition was not allowed by the state law.

State Sen. Amy Galey, the chair of the education committee, wrote a letter to the state board’s general counsel in September that echoed many of the main points of the lawsuit.

“That decision put ur public school athletes – and the schools they attend – at a disadvantage,” Galey wrote.

Brandon, who is a junior, had an NIL offer from a national trading card company that he was not able to accept. The lawsuit said that the “cumulative financial impact to [Brandon] and his family from the Board’s NIL prohibition is over one million dollars.”

Source: wral.com