November 30, 2016 Concussions / Litigation

Arena Football League Insurer Gets the First Down in Concussion Lawsuit

Although it may seem like the NFL is always involved in concussion litigation, another football organization — Arena Football League — is facing accusations over its own concussion procedures. In June 2015, Lorenzo Breland, who played for the Tulsa Talons and the New Orleans Voodoo during his time with the league, sued the AFL after suffering from two concussions. Breland suffered his first blow to the head in 2011. Then in 2014, he suffered a second concussion that ended his football career.

Breland sued Arena …

November 28, 2016 Litigation / MLB

Plaintiffs Strike Out in Suit Seeking to Extend MLB Stadium Safety Netting

Plaintiffs’ hopes of extending the foul ball safety net further down the first- and third-base lines at all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums were dashed recently when a California U.S. District Court dismissed the lawsuit for lack of standing. The plaintiffs’, Oakland Athletics fan Gail Payne and Los Angeles Dodgers fan Stephanie Smith, claim that the extension of the safety net was required to protect fans from injuries caused by foul balls and broken bats, but U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers found the …

November 22, 2016 Litigation

All-American High School Lacrosse Player Brings Lawsuit Against Performance Sports Group LTD for Head Injuries

Melinda Avery, an all-American High School lacrosse player, filed a lawsuit against Performance Sports Group LTD, after sustaining head injuries as a result of a defectively designed lacrosse helmet. Avery, the star goalie of her high school lacrosse team, was struck in the head by a lacrosse ball in April, 2014, while wearing a “Cascade Model R helmet.” In her complaint, Avery argues that the helmet failed to meet the minimum safety guidelines imposed by the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment …

November 17, 2016 Litigation / NFL

Lead Block: NFL Teams Rally to Pre-empt Jerry Jones and Jim Irsay Deposition Testimony

All 23 National Football League (NFL) teams are rallying behind two of their most notorious owners: Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, and Jim Irsay, owner of the Indianapolis Colts. In a letter written to U.S. District Judge William Alsup, the teams asked that Jones and Irsay be excused from giving deposition testimony in a case involving alleged wide-scale painkiller abuse. Specifically, the teams want a protective order imposed that would “at least [defer]” the two owners from giving deposition testimony.

The teams are …

November 16, 2016 Litigation

Blind Hockey Player Fighting to Keep Major Judgment Intact

A blind minor league hockey player—after being poked in the eye with a hockey stick—is now fighting to prevent a federal judge from reopening his case. Kyler Moje was injured in February 2012 while playing for the Danville Dashers, when the stick of another player got under his visor and struck his eye, blinding him. Moje never regained the ability to see and instituted the action against the Federal Hockey League LLC (FHL). After failing to respond to Moje’s lawsuit, a federal court in Illinois …

November 16, 2016 Litigation / MLB

No Extra Innings: Cubs, MLB Reach Settlement With Apparel Vendors

On November 9, 2016, Major League Baseball and the Chicago Cubs reached a settlement with the 84 vendors accused of selling counterfeit MLB merchandise. In the motion, the Cubs declared that it had entered into a confidential settlement with the vendors and requested that the court issue a permanent injunction, preventing them from selling the merchandise in the future.

Due to the great success the Cubs experienced this season, a large number of fake apparel vendors began selling products with symbols resembling MLB marks, leading…

November 14, 2016 Concussions / Litigation / NHL

NHL Seeks To Have Wrongful Death Claims Checked

On November 4, 2016, the NHL sought to have Judge Gary Feinerman of the Northern District of Illinois reconsider the court’s previous decision to allow relatives of deceased hockey player Derek Boogaard to file wrongful death claims against the National Hockey League (NHL). The NHL argued the claims fell under the NHL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and should be preempted.

Judge Feinerman had previously agreed with the player’s family, which alleged the NHL promoted violence and implied head trauma was not dangerous and did not …

November 10, 2016 Concussions / Litigation

Plaintiffs in Concussion Suit Respond to WWE, Inc. Sanctions Motions

Earlier this month, attorneys for World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE) were accused of filing “abusive” sanctions motions against plaintiffs’ attorneys in a class action lawsuit centering on wrestler’s injuries sustained from concussions. The accusations involve a set of interrogatories, signed by plaintiffs’ attorney Konstantine Kyros, where two of the plaintiffs allegedly claimed to have knowledge of fraud by the WWE. Attorneys for the WWE, however, contend that this information directly contradicts previous deposition testimony, where the plaintiffs claimed not to have knowledge of purported WWE …

November 9, 2016 Celebrities / Litigation

Gawker Media, Hogan Finally Settle Sex Tape Saga

This past Wednesday, one of the most notorious journalism lawsuits finally came to an end. Former Gawker CEO Nick Denton agreed to pay $31 million—in addition to a portion of the company’s bankruptcy sale—to former wrestler Hulk Hogan. The agreement brings a final end to the legal drama beginning with Gawker’s publishing a secret sex tape featuring Hogan, whose real name is Terry Gene Bollea. This past March, a Florida Court found Gawker liable for libel to the tune of $115 million.

The broader storyline …

November 8, 2016 Litigation / NFL

DeMeco Ryans Bring Lawsuit Against NFL and Houston Texans for Achilles Injury

DeMeco Ryans, a standout linebacker for the University of Alabama and former Houston Texan and Philadelphia Eagle, recently brought suit against the National Football League, his former team, and multiple entities stemming from a 2014 Achilles tendon injury.

Ryans, the defensive MVP of the 2006 Cotton Bowl and defensive Rookie of the Year after being selected first in the second round of the 2006 draft, played for the Texans from 2006-2011 and from 2012-2015 with the Eagles. While playing for the Eagles in Houston against …