If you have been following coverage on Supreme Court Justice nominee, John G. Roberts, a case entitled National Collegiate Athletic Association ("NCAA") v. Smith is one of the cases highlighted by the media in which Roberts argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of the NCAA. What is important about the NCAA v. Smith case is not that Justice nominee Roberts was involved, but that Document Systems, Inc.'s ("DSI's") very own Renee M. Smith was the "Smith" in that case!

It is not often that a person is involved in litigation that reaches the United States Supreme Court. It is even rarer indeed for a person to be involved in litigation before the U.S. Supreme Court in which a nominee to the Supreme Court is arguing the case for the opposing party. But Renee M. Smith, Assistant General Counsel with DSI is just such a person.

Many of our DocMagic customers know that Renee is an intelligent and talented attorney, and there is no question that that is true. However, few people know that Renee was quite a talented undergraduate collegiate volleyball player for two years at St. Bonaventure University. Because of her hard-driving personality, Renee was able to complete her undergraduate degree at St. Bonaventure in just two and one-half years. This left Renee with two of the four years of eligibility that the NCAA allows collegiate student-athletes. However, when Renee enrolled in Hofstra University's graduate MBA program, she was prevented from playing volleyball due to an arcane NCAA rule that prohibited graduate student-athletes from playing varsity athletics for any school other that the school from which they received their undergraduate degree. Renee attempted to work within the NCAA framework, but her request for a waiver of this rule was denied.

For many people, this would have been the end of the line, but not for Renee. A little over a year later, with her MBA from Hofstra in hand and now attending the University of Pittsburgh Law School, Renee once again applied for a waiver of the NCAA's rule and once again her waiver request was denied. Motivated by a strong sense of the injustice and arbitrary character of this rule, Renee sued the NCAA in federal court alleging, among other things, violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act and Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act of 1972, an act that prohibits discrimination based on sex in educational institutions that receive federal assistance. Renee prepared the complaint and supporting documents, and argued the case before the federal court, herself.

The district court dismissed Renee's complaint and denied Renee's request to amend her complaint with regard to the Title IX claim. Undeterred, Renee appealed the district court's decision to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia. Once again, Renee herself prepared all the written documents and argued the case before the appellate court. This time, however, Renee was more successful. The appellate court agreed with the District Court's dismissal of the antitrust claim, but ruled that the district court should have allowed Renee to amend her complaint with respect to the Title IX claim. While not deciding on the merits of her Title IX claim, the appellate court sent the case back to the district court. At this point, the NCAA petitioned the Supreme Court to rule on the propriety of the Title IX claim, and the Supreme Court obliged.

Preparing for and arguing a case before the Supreme Court is no small undertaking. Recognizing this fact, Renee sought out and obtained the assistance of a seasoned litigator: Carter Phillips, managing partner of the Washington, D.C. office of the internationally renowned law firm of Sidley Austin Brown & Wood. Renee continued to have significant input into the planning and preparation of the case. Arguing the case on behalf of the NCAA: then-partner at Hogan & Hartson and current nominee for justice of the Supreme Court, John G. Roberts.

So does this little story have a happy ending? If you ask Renee, the answer is a resounding "yes"! On the negative side, the Supreme Court sided with the NCAA's narrow interpretation of application of Title IX to the NCAA, holding that "entities that simply benefit economically from federal assistance received by others" (in this case, the NCAA through the payment of dues from its member institutions) are not subject to Title IX. But, on the positive side, the Supreme Court left the door open that Title IX could apply in those cases where entities receive federal assistance, whether directly or indirectly through an intermediary. But even more important is that due in no small part to the persistence and doggedness of a Division 1 women's volleyball player named Renee Smith, the NCAA has eliminated the rule prohibiting graduate student-athletes from playing for only their undergraduate schools.

Bill Lambropoulos is the General Counsel and Director of Compliance and Legal Services at Document Systems, Inc.