Sailin’ On

America’s Cup challenges are intricate political affairs in the sailing world.  In a process that goes back almost 150 years, the champion of the quadrennial race anoints a “Challenger of Record,” which is charged with setting the terms of the subsequent regatta.  New York Law Journal has the tale of the most-recent spat over terms.

In 2007, the Swiss team defended its 2003 title and appointed a Spanish club as the official challenger.  A week later, the Golden Gate Yacht Club objected – saying the Spaniards were sham club, picked solely to set favorable terms for the Swiss.  In what doesn’t seem to be much of a defense, the Swiss countered that the Americans were trying to force through a structure that only they and, coincidentally, the Swiss themselves, could afford.

Fortunately, there is no shortage of lawyers interested in sailing.  The BigLaw connection and explanation of the graphic, after the jump.

On appeal, the New York court found a requirement that the Challenger of Record have conducted annual regattas unambiguous, disqualifying the Spaniards from the role.  The court has ordered two billionaires, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, owner of the Golden Gate’s ship, and Ernesto Bertarelli, who owns the Swiss ship, to negotiate terms.  That will likely result in a rare matchup of multihulled vessels competing for the Cup in 2011.

As for the lawyers: Barry Ostrager (CUNY BA ‘68, NYU JD ‘72, CUNY MA ‘73) of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett represented the Swiss; Maureen Mahoney (Indiana BA ‘74, Chicago JD ‘78) of Latham & Watkins, the Americans; and David Rivkin (Yale BA ‘77, JD ‘80) of Debevoise & Plimpton, the Spanish.

As for the image, that’s the cover of the Bad Brains’ eponymous debut album – one of the greatest punk recordings of all time.    This post takes its title from song #1.

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