Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Riddell Will Continue, Judge Rules

A Texas federal judge told helmet manufacturer Riddell Inc. that it will not be able to escape a wrongful death lawsuit, denying the company’s motion to dismiss based on the state’s statute of limitations.

DuQuan Myers played high school football in the Dallas area from 2005 through 2009, during which his mother, Letitia Wilbourn, claimed that he suffered 15 concussions and “innumerable subconcussive blows to the head.” Myers took his own life in February 2017, and his mother filed suit against Riddell in March 2019, …

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No Goal: Massachusetts Panel Rules that Hockey Player Can’t Sue Fellow Player or Officials over Injury

The Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled in a split decision that a high school-age hockey player cannot sue a fellow player or other officials for a serious injury he suffered as a result of an illegal hit.

In July 2013, hockey player Daniel Borella was injured by opposing player Julion Scott Lever near the end of a game between the New England Renegades and Team Kanaly. After being checked by Lever, Borella briefly lost consciousness and had his hand slashed by Lever’s skate. Borella permanently lost …

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NFL Hurting From New Suit by Former Players Over Painkillers

The NFL’s litigation woes continue.  On May 20, 2014, the league was hit with a lawsuit brought by a group of retired former players claiming that the NFL illegally supplied them with narcotics and other painkillers to mask their injuries and keep them on the playing field, intentionally ignoring the risks these drugs had on the players’ long-term health.  The filing insists that the actions by team doctors and trainers were illegal because team medical personnel never obtained prescriptions, failed to keep drug records, and …

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Former Baltimore Orioles Star sues Seminole Tribe for $10M Over Casino Slip and Fall

Two years ago retired MLB Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson fell off of a stage during a charity event at the Hard Rock Casino in Southern Florida. Now, Robinson is suing the casino’s owner – the Seminole Tribe – for almost $10 million in damages as a result of the plunge.

Allegedly, Robinson’s tumble occurred after the star attempted to stand using the wall behind his chair for support. However, the “wall” was actually a curtain with no railing or other support behind it.  Robinson …

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NHL in Fight with Insurer over Concussion Lawsuits

The National Hockey League is currently being sued in two separate lawsuits by former players who allege that the league concealed the long-term effects of concussions and failed to adequately warn them of the same.  On April 17, the NHL was sued again – this time by one of its insurers (TIG Insurance Co., a New Hampshire-based unit of Fairfax Financial Holdings, Ltd.), a company that hopes to limit or avoid its duty to defend the league in the existing cases and the new suits …

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The Shaq “Attack”

The one-time NBA superstar and basketball commentator,  Shaquille O’Neal (“Shaq”), is under investigation for an incident that occurred outside Turner Studios in Atlanta, GA on March 19th. An Atlanta news station obtained a police report detailing an alleged assault between Shaq and Robert Williams, a co-worker, outside of Turner Studios. After his 2011 retirement, Shaq signed on with Turner Sports and joined “Inside the NBA” as an NBA commentator.

According to the police report, Williams stated that Shaq “ran out of a room …

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Former Portland Timbers Soccer Player Files Concussion Lawsuit Against Team

Former Portland Timbers soccer player Eddie Johnson’s lawsuit is the latest development in the ever-evolving arena of concussion lawsuits by amateur and professional athletes.  This is the second concussion suit brought by a player against an MLS club; Bryan Namoff sued DC United in 2012 and that litigation is ongoing.

Johnson filed his Complaint in Oregon state court against the team and its medical staff, alleging that his career ended prematurely because they negligently allowed him to play while he was still suffering from concussion-related …

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Junior Seau’s Family Displeased with Proposed Settlement in NFL Concussion Case

Fighting recently broke out amongst plaintiff’s attorneys attempting to settle the massive multi-district concussion litigation against the NFL after the presiding judge, U.S. District Judge Anita Brody, nixed a $760 million dollar settlement deal proposal.  Judge Brody’s concerns were that the lump sum would be inadequate to fund what could potentially involve 20,000 claims by a variety of NFL alumni over a period of 65 years.  Now, the family of the deceased NFL star Junior Seau is voicing their own objections to the proposed deal.…

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Former Lions Running Back Latest to Sue NFL Over Concussions

Jahvid Best was a first-round draft pick for the Detroit Lions in 2010.  Only three years later, the team released Best due to health complications the running back suffered as a result of incurring multiple concussions on the playing field.  Best is now the latest NFL alum to join a long list of others in suing the league for intentionally downplaying the long-term risks of concussions and their role in later-life cognitive decline.

Best’s suit names the NFL, as well as helmet-manufacturers Riddell and Easton-Bell …

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Delay of Game: Slow Progress on Settlement in NFL Concussion Litigation

By late last year the giant NFL concussion lawsuit – a case where several thousand former NFL players are suing the league for intentionally downplaying the risks of concussions and related head injuries – looked to be drawing to an early end.  Now, one week after U.S. District Judge Anita Brody rejected a motion for preliminary approval of a proposed $765 million settlement to end the ongoing multi-district concussion litigation against the NFL, renewed settlement talks amongst attorneys for the 4,500+ NFL alumni are becoming …

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