Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary Joi L. Garner provides leadership and counsel on all legal matters relating to NYRA’s operations, strategies and activities. She plans and manages the activities of the Legal Department, which includes NYRA’s in-house Attorneys, and its Compliance, Internal Audit, Stewards and Safety Steward departments.

Garner joined NYRA in 2021 after serving as Executive Vice President and General Counsel at THINK450, the marketing and licensing subsidiary of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), where she was responsible for group product licensing, developing brand collaborations and commercializing the likeness rights of the collective group of current NBA players. 

At THINK450, Garner was the lead negotiator in several of the NBPA’s most significant licensing deals, including agreements with Take-Two Interactive (NBA2K), Fanatica and Dapper Labs. Garner was also instrumental in creating the NBPA’s partnership with Anheuser-Busch; and in social-justice initiatives, including DoorDash’s #PayItForward challenge that supported Black-owned businesses and Kia Motors’ holiday campaign that provided relief to families impacted by the pandemic. 

From 2016-2018, Garner was at NYRA as associate general counsel and was responsible for commercial and technical contracts, commercial litigation, sweepstakes and contests. She also served as production counsel for NYRA’s television shows, including oversight of the landmark media rights agreement with FOX Sports. 

Prior to her tenure at THINK450 and NYRA, Garner was a member of the Sports and Entertainment group of Garvey Schubert Barer, advising media, companies, athletes and entertainers on corporate and entertainment matters. She also served at Morrison & Foerster LLP as an attorney; at the National Basketball Association as an international PR associate; and at MediaLink Worldwide, a broadcast public relations firm.

Several industry organizations and media outlets have cited Garner for her work, among them Black Sports Network, which featured her in its “Women in Sports” series; and Marcom Weekly, which named her to its ranking of “28 Powerful Black Leaders in Marketing & Media.” Garner has also been honored by the National Black Lawyers in its list of “Top 40 Under 40” and by SuperLawyers as a “Rising Star” in the Sports and Entertainment field. 

Garner is a native of Philadelphia. She earned a law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law; and a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Media Communication from New York University.