Major League Baseball Strikes Back Against Request from Fans for Deposition

On October 19, 2015, Major League Baseball and its co-defendants quickly responded to a letter written by baseball fans to Hon. Judge Scheindlin asking for permission to depose Commissioner Robert Manfred. While the fans in the antitrust lawsuit are seeking to depose the Commissioner in regards to MLB broadening the topics Mr. Manfred is to testify to at trial, the defendants responded with some rather convincing arguments to Judge Scheindlin in opposition.

First, MLB argues that the fans should not be able to depose the …

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Plaintiffs in Putative Class Actions v. DraftKings, FanDuel Seek NY Consolidation

Since news of the DraftKings insider-trading scandal broke in late September 2015, a total of 11 putative class actions have been filed against the company and its top competitor, FanDuel. The two companies offer daily fantasy sports betting (DFS) platforms to paying users, and the lawsuits have arisen from the websites’ alleged unfair practices and illegal activity.

As the cases against DraftKings and FanDuel pile up, at least 3 petitions have been filed with the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation requesting that the cases …

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WWE Attorneys Ask Court for Sanctions, Grapple Over Proper Actions in CTE Lawsuit

On Friday, October 16th, 2015, World Wrestling Entertainment filed a motion in Connecticut federal court, seeking sanctions and other penalties against a set of attorneys from personal injury attorneys near Festus representing former WWF performer Matt Osborne. Osborne created and popularized the character of Doink the Clown, a staple of early to mid-1990s professional wrestling, until he was fired by management in 1993 for drug-related issues. Following Osborne’s death by overdose in 2013, his family hired a team of attorneys to represent them on behalf …

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Complaint Amended in Florida Federal Class Action v. DraftKings, FanDuel

A Florida federal class action has been the most recent lawsuit to join the blitz against daily fantasy sports (DFS) websites, FanDuel and DraftKings. Specifically, the Florida case, originally filed on October 15, 2015, alleged that the DFS sites permitted certain users, known as “shark bettors,” to unfairly run complex computer programs and algorithms, which utilize “elaborate statistical modeling and automated tools that can manage hundreds of entries at once and identify the weakest opponents.”

On October 16, 2015, the plaintiffs amended the original complaint

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Class Action Filed Against NBA Video Game Developer

On Monday, October 19, 2015, two Illinois residents filed a proposed class action lawsuit against Take-Two, a video game publisher, developer, and distributor, alleging violation of privacy rights.

The video games in question are Take-Two’s NBA 2K15 and NBA 2K16 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One gaming platforms. According to the complaint, Take-Two integrates PS4’s camera and Xbox’s Kinect camera into the games, allowing users to create NBA players with a “personally identifying facial rendition.” The plaintiffs argue that this feature constitutes illegal collection of …

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EA, NCAA Class Action: Plaintiffs Want Settlement Objectors to Post Bond

On Thursday, October 15, 2015, the plaintiffs in the Electronic Arts, Inc., NCAA right of publicity class action insisted that a federal court impose an appeal bond on settlement objectors.

The lawsuit — a class action alleging unauthorized use of former and current student-athletes’ names and likeness — ended in a $60 million settlement in June. However, two student athletes — Nathan Harris and Darrin Duncan — have appealed the court’s denial of their objections to the settlement. The class members in support of the …

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“Apex Predators” and “Shark Bettors,” Oh My! Florida Federal Class Action v. DraftKings, FanDuel Adds a Twist

As it now stands, DraftKings and FanDuel — daily fantasy sports gambling websites (DFS)— face over a half-dozen civil lawsuits in federal district courts since the insider trading scandal emerged in late September 2015.  The most recent action was filed in a Florida federal court on October 15, 2015.

Like the lawsuits filed against DraftKings and FanDuel in states such as New York and Louisiana, the Florida lawsuit seeks certification for a class action. Under the complaint, the proposed plaintiff classes are “all individuals …

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Fans Write Judge, Seek Commissioner’s Deposition

On October 14, 2015, a letter was written to Hon. Judge Scheindlin of the Southern District of New York asking for the opportunity to depose MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred. The letter, written by counsel representing a class of baseball fans, is in relation to an antitrust class action suit filed in 2012 against Major League Baseball and its broadcasting blackout rules. The fans are challenging the restrictions that MLB and the major cable and satellite companies are able to impose on local television broadcasting for …

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Third Circuit Will Revisit New Jersey Sports Betting Decision

On Wednesday, October 14, 2015,  the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit granted New Jersey’s request to revisit its decision to disallow New Jersey from legalizing sports betting.

Last October, New Jersey lifted its prohibition on sports betting in racetracks and casinos. In response, the NFL and NCAA—two sports leagues that oppose sports betting—sought an injunction to stop New Jersey. The district court granted the injunction and subsequently found that repealing the prohibition violated the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992. …

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Players Oppose Garbage Time Objection in NFL Concussion Suit

After years of hard-fought litigation, a settlement seemed like it had finally been reached between former players and the National Football League for more than $750 million in favor of payment to the injured players’ and their families, with a large amount of funding also going directly to medical research for head trauma from football-related injuries.  However, some members of the class of former players immediately objected to the settlement, and it seems that many of them are still unhappy with the settlement agreement nearly …

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