Vikings Owners Granted Massive Reduction in Damages in RICO Suit

On June 1, 2018, a three-judge appellate panel in New Jersey reviewed a 26-year old racketeering case against Minnesota Vikings owners, Zygmunt, Mark, Leonard Wilf, and other defendants, determining that a nearly $103 million award must be reconsidered.

In its 90-page decision, the panel upheld Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) claims, as well as some non-RICO claims, including fraud and breach of fiduciary duties. In doing so, however, it decided that the total award required reexamination because it improperly included RICO and non-RICO …

November 18, 2017 Concussions / NFL

Researchers Report Evidence of CTE in a Living Patient for the First Time

Researchers in Chicago report they have detected evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in a living patient for the first time by detecting deposits of tau proteins. The degenerative brain disease currently can only be formally diagnosed after an autopsy. The study also confirmed that a “fingerprint” signature of CTE exists. More research is needed to verify the correlation, but it is a groundbreaking first step toward understanding CTE and developing a cure. The case study was published in the journal Neurosurgery this …

August 11, 2016 NFL

NFL’s Adrian Peterson Suspension for Alleged Child Abuse Upheld

The Eighth Circuit has affirmed an arbitrator’s decision to uphold the NFL’s suspension of Adrian Peterson. Peterson, a running back for the Minnesota Vikings, was suspended for the remainder of the 2014 season amid allegations that he had abused his child.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell imposed the suspension, citing a violation the league’s personal conduct policy when Peterson beat his son with a wooden switch, which was later affirmed by an arbitrator. In February 2015, U.S. District Judge David Doty vacated the arbitrator’s decision. …

June 15, 2015 NFL

Adrian Peterson Suspension: NFL Contends its Actions were Proper Despite Player Union Claims Otherwise

In 2014, Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was suspended by the NFL after allegations surfaced that he had been disciplining his 4-year-old son with a wooden switch.

After Peterson’s suspension, the NFL Players Association filed a grievance on Peterson’s behalf against the NFL. The Association claimed that the NFL’s suspension of Peterson was retroactive punishment which is prohibited by NFL’s collective bargaining agreement. The Association contended that the NFL disciplinary policy that was in place at the time the events allegedly occurred dictated that …