Sports Lawyer for Retired Professional Athletes: The Legal Playbook for Life After Sports
Retirement from professional sports often comes much earlier than most careers. The average playing career lasts only three to five years, yet the financial, legal, and business decisions athletes make after retirement can affect them for decades.
A sports lawyer for retired professional athletes helps former players protect their wealth, structure businesses, review contracts, and avoid costly legal mistakes that can derail long-term success. It’s a smart move to get legal help for athletes starting a business.
Ryan Ejim is a post-retirement lawyer for professional athletes and a former professional basketball player who now helps athletes transition into business, investing, and leadership roles.
As a sports lawyer for retired athletes, he brings both legal expertise and firsthand experience to the challenges athletes face after their playing careers.
This guide explains how retired athletes can:
Build businesses Invest safely
Protect their personal brand
Avoid risky deals
Create meaningful second careers
Former players often begin their search simply by looking for a lawyer for professional athletes who understands business deals, contracts, and post-career transitions. Or you might be wondering, “Where can I find a sports lawyer near me? Or, “Where can I find an athlete business lawyer near me?”
With the right strategy and the guidance of a sports lawyer for retired professional athletes, retirement from sports can become the beginning of a powerful Second Act©, a complete suite of legal business services for retired professional athletes at Toronto, Ontario law firm Massey LLP.
What Do Professional Athletes Do After Retirement?
Most professional athletes transition into business, coaching, media, or investing after their playing careers. Because careers are short, many work with a sports lawyer to help structure businesses, review contracts, and protect long-term financial stability. Learn more about how athletes start businesses after professional sports.
Legal Help for Retired Professional Athletes Transitioning to Another Career After Sports
Retired professional athletes and athletes transitioning into another career want help with:
Starting a business Investing in opportunities
Reviewing contracts
Planning long-term wealth
The Athlete Second Act© Guide — A Roadmap for Life After Professional Sports
Ryan Ejim, an athlete business lawyer, helps athletes navigate five key stages of life after sports.
Step 1 — Understand the Financial Reality
Most professional athletes retire in their late 20s or early 30s, creating decades of post-career life.
Key realities:
- Short career span
- Concentrated earnings
- High exposure to investment risk
A sports lawyer for retired athletes can help athletes plan for long-term financial stability.
Step 2 — Build a Solid Legal Foundation for Business
Before entering business or investing, athletes should establish strong legal structures. An athlete business lawyer can help you get on the right track.
Key steps:
- Review contracts
- Protect brand and intellectual property
- Incorporate businesses
- Establish asset protection strategies
A post-retirement lawyer for professional athletes ensures these structures are built properly to protect your future.
Step 3 — Explore Business Opportunities
When many athletes transition into business and entrepreneurship after their playing career is over, they are looking for a lawyer for athletes starting a business. Understand investment risks for professional athletes before committing capital.
Common paths:
- Starting companies
- Buying franchises
- Investing in startups
- Real estate ownership
Working with a legal advisor for retired athletes helps ensure these ventures are legally sound.
Step 4 — Transition into Your Second Act©
Former athletes often move into:
- Coaching
- Broadcasting and brand endorsement
- Entrepreneurship
- Corporate leadership
A lawyer for professional athletes can help review employment contracts, marketing and branding contracts, and protect your future opportunities.
Step 5 — Build Long-Term Wealth
The final stage focuses on sustaining and growing wealth.
Strategies include:
- Diversified investments
- Business ownership
- Real estate portfolios
- Estate planning
A post-retirement lawyer for professional athletes can help coordinate these strategies.
Why Work with a Sports Lawyer for Retired Professional Athletes—Ryan Ejim?
Before becoming a sports lawyer for retired professional athletes, Ryan Ejim played professional basketball internationally. Ryan Ejim has a rare advantage among sports lawyers: he has actually been a professional athlete.
Before becoming a lawyer for professional athletes, Ryan Ejim spent years competing internationally as a professional basketball player in Portugal, Spain, Asia, and South America.
Read about Ryan’s story, as a basketball player turned athlete business lawyer, published in LAW360 Canada by global legal publisher LexisNexis, Part 1 and Part 2.
Like many athletes, he experienced firsthand how quickly a playing career can end— nd how important the next phase becomes—your Second Act©.
Today, he’s a lawyer for athletes starting a business working with retired professional athletes navigating that transition, combining real-world experience with commercial law and corporate law legal expertise.
Ryan Ejim Understands Life After Professional Sports
As a sports lawyer for retired professional athletes, Ryan Ejim understands both the legal and personal challenges of life after sports. He is a former professional basketball player who:
- Knows the world of professional basketball. He has been cultivating relationships with professional athletes in football, hockey, baseball, and other sports for more than 10 years.
- Understands the demands of professional sports on your body, mind, and emotions.
- Recognizes there are politics in every team, professional league, and sport.
- Knows that when you’re a success, everyone wants a piece of you.
- Understands that some people want to take advantage of you.
- Knows you get the contract terms you negotiate with the help of a savvy athlete business lawyer.
Lawyer for Athletes Starting a Business
Many professional athletes choose to start businesses after retirement. Whether launching a company, buying a franchise, or partnering in a venture, the legal structure of the business plays a critical role in long-term success.
Athletes often look for a lawyer for athletes starting a business when they are ready to move from idea to execution. Looking for legal help for athletes starting a business? Contact Ryan Ejim and get started today.
A sports lawyer for retired professional athletes can help:
- Incorporate and structure the company
- Draft shareholder or partnership agreements
- Protect intellectual property and brand rights
- Negotiate contracts with investors or partners
Working with Ryan Ejim, sports lawyer for retired athletes, ensures that your business is built on a strong legal foundation from day one. An athlete business lawyer can be your best ally as you lay the foundation for your Second Act©.
Key Statistics About Life After Professional Sports
Average career length: 3 – 5 years
About 60% of NBA players face financial difficulty within five years
About 78% of NFL players face financial difficulty within two years
These realities highlight why many athletes work with a sports lawyer for retired professional athletes when planning their next Second Act©.
The Professional Athlete Career Timeline
Rookie Contract → Peak Earnings → Transition Planning → Retirement → Second Act©
At each stage, legal and financial decisions shape long-term outcomes.
A sports lawyer for retired athletes helps guide athletes through transition planning to retirement—your Second Act©.
Common Legal Mistakes Retired Athletes Make
Are you a retired professional athlete looking to start a business, buy a franchise, sign a brand endorsement deal, or invest in real estate? Don’t get caught making these rookie legal mistakes:
- Signing agreements without legal review
- Investing without due diligence
- Failing to protect brand rights
- Entering unclear partnerships
- Ignoring long-term asset protection
A lawyer for professional athletes helps prevent these costly mistakes.
Legal Checklist for Retired Professional Athletes
- Review all contracts
- Protect intellectual property
- Structure businesses properly
- Evaluate investment risks
- Plan for long-term asset protection
Working with a post-retirement lawyer for professional athletes ensures these steps are handled correctly.
When to Contact a Lawyer for Athletes Starting a Business
Contacting a lawyer for athletes starting a business is a wise move. Here are specific situations when clients typically reach out:
- Are offered a business deal
- Are reviewing an investment opportunity
- Want to start a company
- Need a contract reviewed
- Are entering a partnership
If you are facing any of these business situations, a sports lawyer for retired athletes can help ensure your decisions are legally sound. Legal help for athletes starting a business is just an email away; contact Ryan Ejim.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
A sports lawyer for retired professional athletes helps protect wealth, structure businesses, review contracts, and avoid legal risks after retirement.
They advise on business ventures, investments, contracts, and long-term asset protection. Legal help for athletes starting a business is just an email away; reach out to Ryan Ejim who helps retired professional athletes find their Second Act©.
Athletes should consult a sports lawyer for retired athletes before signing any business, investment, or employment agreement. Getting legal help for athletes starting a business is prudent—and smart, too.
Ryan Ejim is sports lawyer for retired athletes can help you with starting a business, buying a franchise, inking a brand sponsorship, coaching contract, or investing in real estate. Getting legal help for athletes starting a business is a smart move.
Speak with a Sports Lawyer for Retired Professional Athletes
When you’re looking for legal help for athletes starting a business, contact Ryan Ejim, an athlete business lawyer, and get started today. Ryan Ejim has a rare advantage: he has actually been a professional athlete.
Professional athletes often reach out when they want help with:
- Reviewing a business deal
- Evaluating an investment opportunity
- Starting a company after retirement
