William Bock III

Indianapolis, Indiana

Partner

phone: (317) 777-7412
fax: (317) 777-7412
email: Email Me

Mr. Bock represents clients in litigation and arbitration throughout the United States. He concentrates his practice in the areas of Complex Litigation, Arbitration, Appellate Practice, Sports Law and Litigation, Election Law and Government Law. He has:

Handled cases before the Indiana Supreme Court, the Indiana Court of Appeals, the Sixth and Seventh Circuit Courts of Appeals and State and/or Federal courts in Indiana, Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and California;
Handled election disputes, recounts, and election contests before trial courts, the Indiana Election Commission and the Indiana Recount Commission; and,
Appeared before panels of the American Arbitration Association and the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)1 headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, in more than forty (40+) sports eligibility disputes.

Mr. Bock has substantial experience in athletic drug testing matters and sports eligibility disputes and since September, 2007 has served as General Counsel to the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. USADA is the independent entity charged with the responsibility to investigate and prosecute instances of drug use in Olympic and Paralympic sports by U.S. athletes. (www.usada.org) Mr. Bock represents USADA in prosecutions of athletes accused of violating sports drug testing rules. Mr. Bock was interviewed for and quoted in the best selling book, Game of Shadows: Barry Bonds, BALCO, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports. He has been a regular participant and presenter at national conferences on sports law issues.

Mr. Bock has also developed expertise in the specialized areas of government defense, constitutional law, voting rights and election law. He has defended and advised entities of local government in Voting Rights Act, political firing and constitutional and redistricting cases and has represented clients in recounts, election contests, and election boundary disputes before the Indiana Election Commission and Indiana Recount Commission. He has handled a number of matters involving compliance of voting systems with state and federal law and has represented counties in negotiations with their election services vendors. He has also served as special redistricting counsel to the Indiana House Republican Caucuses in 2000 and 2010, to the Indianapolis City-County Council in 2002 and to other units of government.

Since 2000 Mr. Bock has handled six (6) recounts and/or election contests involving the election of state legislators from districts throughout Indiana. Mr. Bock’s clients have been successful in every recount or election contest he has defended before the Indiana Recount Commission. In 2007 Mr. Bock successfully defended a state legislator in a post election challenge to his residency that was brought in Porter County Superior Court. In 2006 Mr. Bock obtained a trial court judgment overturning the Boone County Election Board’s refusal to accept a candidate’s filing for local office.

Mr. Bock is familiar with the intricate rules applicable to entities of state and local government and has regularly been hired by municipalities, legislative bodies, county election boards, state agencies and other elected officials to provide advice and handle litigation on their behalf.

Recent cases of note in which Mr. Bock has been involved include Mr. Bock’s representation of the City of East Chicago in multiple lawsuits before the Indiana Supreme Court in 2009 and 2010 concerning the City’s entitlement to revenues under the economic development agreement with the East Chicago riverboat. Foundations of East Chicago, Inc. v. City of East Chicago, 927 N.E.2d 900, 2010 WL 1979159, (Ind. 2010); City of East Chicago, Indiana v. East Chicago Second Century, Inc., 908 N.E.2d 611 (Ind. 2009); and Zoeller v. East Chicago Second Century, Inc., 904 N.E.2d 213 (Ind. 2009).

Mr. Bock has also successfully handled numerous political firing cases and other employment disputes for municipalities. Recently, in Skrundz v. Pabey, 2009 WL 1704687 (N.D.Ind. 2009), Mr. Bock obtained a judgment on the evidence in his client’s favor following a four day jury trial in a political firing case. Other political discharge cases in which Mr. Bock was involved are identified below in a listing of representative cases.

Mr. Bock has regularly represented municipalities in other disputes regarding the scope of their statutory authority and in constitutional matters. For instance, in Clay Tp. of Hamilton County ex rel. Hagan v. Clay Tp. Regional Waste Dist., 838 N.E.2d 1054 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005), Mr. Bock was lead appellate counsel for Clay Township of Hamilton County, obtaining reversal of a trial court judgment which had permitted a regional waste district to reallocate appointments to its board without the consent of Clay Township which had previously made the appointments. In Parrish v. Pike Tp. Trustee's Office of Marion County, 742 N.E.2d 515 (Ind. Ct. App. 2001), Mr. Bock successfully defended his governmental client’s decision regarding poor relief against a challenge by the Legal Services Organization of Indiana.

In 2009 Mr. Bock was appointed by the international swimming federation, the Federation Internationale de Natation (FINA) headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, (www.fina.org), to serve as one of six (6) international arbitrators on the FINA Doping Panel which adjudicates sports doping matters involving international swimmers. Bill has served on multiple arbitration panels for FINA and attended the World Swimming Championships in 2010 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (short course) and in 2011 in Shanghai, China, as a member of the FINA Doping Panel.

During 2004 through 2006 Mr. Bock served as Parliamentarian of the Indiana House of Representatives in which capacity he advised the Speaker of the House on legal and parliamentary issues. As Parliamentarian Mr. Bock also provided oversight on legal matters involving the House, including litigation brought concerning Indiana’s photo identification law and a challenge to the practice of legislative prayers.

1CAS is the international arbitral body charged by the International Olympic Committee with adjudicating sporting disputes in the Olympic Movement.

Areas of Practice:: Sports Law and Litigation; Business Litigation and Arbitration; Appellate Practice; Municipal & Election Law and Litigation
Litigation Percentage:: 50% of Practice Devoted to Litigation
Bar Admissions:: Indiana, 1989; U.S. District Court Northern District of Indiana, 1989; U.S. District Court Southern District of Indiana, 1989; U.S. District Court Northern District of Florida, 2008; U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit, 1989; U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 2007
Education:: The University of Michigan Law School, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1989 J.D.; Honors: Cum Laude; Oral Roberts University, 1985 B.A.; Honors: Summa Cum Laude

Professional Associations and Memberships:: Sports Lawyers Association, Member; Michigan Journal of Law Reform, Member; Indianapolis Bar Association, Sports and Entertainment Section; Past Chairman; Indiana State Bar Association; American Bar Association; Indiana State Board of Prison Fellowship, Past Co-Chairman; Indiana State Board of Justice Fellowship, Past Member; Neighborhood Advocacy Corporation, Founding Board Member
Representative Cases - Federal Cases:: Graham v. U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, 2011 WL 1261321 (E.D.N.C. 2011); Dado v. Pabey, 2011 WL 854908 (N.D. Ind. 2011); U.S. S.E.C. v. Payne, 2011 WL 693604 (S.D. Ind. 2011); Skrundz v. Pabey, 2009 WL 1704687 (N.D. Ind. 2009); Camacho v. City of East Chicago, 2008 WL 4809625 (N.D. Ind. 2008); Camacho v. Pabey, 2008 WL 2990683 (N.D. Ind. 2008); U.S. v. Graham, 555 F.Supp.2d 1046 (N.D. Cal. 2008); Gatlin v. U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, 2008 WL 2567657 (N.D. Fla. 2008); Cieminski v. Flaugher, 2008 WL 482579 (S.D. Ohio 2008); Dillard v. Marion County Election Bd., 2008 WL 187531 (S.D. Ind. 2008); Austin-Ridle v. Pabey, 2007 WL 4355857 (N.D. Ind. 2007); Carr v. City of East Chicago, Ind., 2007 WL 4287570 (N.D. Ind. 2007); Kollintzas v. Pabey, 2007 WL 4277912, (N.D. Ind. 2007); Sanders v. City of East Chicago, Ind., 2007 WL 3505307 (N.D. Ind. 2007); DeLaCruz v. Pabey, 2007 WL 3102143 (N.D. Ind. 2007); Ramos v. Pabey, 628 F.Supp.2d 895, (N.D. Ind. 2007); Allgood v. General Motors Corp., 2007 WL 647496 (S.D. Ind. 2007); Allgood v. General Motors Corp., 2006 WL 2669337 (S.D. Ind. 2006); In re 2005 U.S. Grand Prix, 2006 WL 1663841 (S.D. Ind. 2006); Bowers v. Federation Internationale de L'Automobile, 461 F.Supp.2d 855 (S.D. Ind. 2006); Allgood v. General Motors Corp., 2005 WL 2218371 (S.D. Ind. 2005); Knauer v. Jonathon Roberts Financial Group, Inc., 348 F.3d 230 (7th Cir. 2003); FDL, Inc. v. Simmons Co., 2003 WL 23220055 (S.D. Ind. 2003); Tanford v. Brand, 932 F.Supp. 1139 (S.D. Ind. 1996); Hines v. Marion County Election Board, 166 F.R.D. 402 (S.D. Ind. 1995); U.S. v. Wedzeb Enterprises, Inc., 844 F.Supp. 1328 (S.D. Ind. 1994)
Representative Cases - State Cases:: Foundations of East Chicago, Inc. v. City of East Chicago, 927 N.E.2d 900, 2010 WL 1979159 (Ind. 2010); Lees Inns of America, Inc. v. William R. Lee Irrevocable Trust, 924 N.E.2d 143 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010); City of East Chicago, Indiana v. East Chicago Second Century, Inc., 908 N.E.2d 611 (Ind. 2009); Foundations of East Chicago, Inc. v. City of East Chicago, 905 N.E.2d 30 (Ind. Ct. App. 2009); Zoeller v. East Chicago Second Century, Inc., 904 N.E.2d 213 (Ind. 2009); Carter v. City of East Chicago, 881 N.E.2d 1114 (Ind. Ct. App. 2008); Peters v. Sutton, 878 N.E.2d 544 (Ind. Ct. App. 2007); City of East Chicago v. East Chicago Second Century, Inc., 878 N.E.2d 358 (Ind. Ct. App. 2007); Natare Corp. v. D.S.I., Duraplastec Systems, Inc., 855 N.E.2d 985 (Ind. 2006); Clay Tp. of Hamilton County ex rel. Hagan v. Clay Tp. Regional Waste Dist., 838 N.E.2d 1054 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005); Natare Corp. v. D.S.I., Duraplastec Systems, Inc., 833 N.E.2d 76 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005); Sadler v. State ex rel. Sanders, 811 N.E.2d 936 (Ind. Ct. App. 2004); Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Bailey, 808 N.E.2d 1198 (Ind. Ct. App. 2004); Peterson v. Borst, 789 N.E.2d 460 (Ind. 2003); Peterson v. Borst, 786 N.E.2d 668 (Ind. 2003); Peterson v. Borst, 784 N.E.2d 934 (Ind. 2003); Parrish v. Pike Tp. Trustee's Office of Marion County, 742 N.E.2d 515 (Ind. Ct. App. 2001); Shell Oil Co. v. Meyer, 705 N.E.2d 962 (Ind. 1998)