Ten NFL Players Charged By DOJ with Health Care Fraud

The Department of Justice has indicted 10 former NFL players, including Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis, on charges that they defrauded an NFL health care plan of over $3.4 million.

The DOJ filed two indictments on December 6 in Kentucky federal court that were unsealed on December 12. In these indictments, federal prosecutors alleged that this group of former NFL players made fraudulent claims to the Gene Upshaw NFL Health Reimbursement Account Plan. The players allegedly filed reimbursement claims on medical equipment that they …

November 22, 2019 Baseball / Hockey / Labor & Employment / Litigation / MLB / NFL / NHL / Tax

Players’ Unions v. Jock Taxes: An Inside Look at This Waging Legal Battle

Last week, we reported that the NHL Players’ Association, MLB Players’ Association, and NFL Players’ Association sued the city of Pittsburgh for charging a fee on nonresident professional athletes that play within the city. These fees, often referred to as jock taxes, have come under fire over the past few years.

The players’ associations are not challenging the legality of jock taxes in general, about which you can continue reading here. It is well established that states and municipalities have the right to tax …

November 15, 2019 Baseball / Hockey / Labor & Employment / Litigation / MLB / NFL / NHL / Tax

NFL, MLB, and NHL Players’ Associations Sue Pittsburgh Over “Unconstitutional” Athletes Fee

The city of Pittsburgh is being challenged for a fee it is charging nonresident professional athletes who play for Pittsburgh teams.

The NHL Players’ Association, MLB Players’ Association, and NFL Players’ Association, along with baseball player Jeff Francoeur and hockey players Kyle Palmieri and Scott Wilson, have sued the city of Pittsburgh. The city currently imposes a three percent general revenue income fee on professional athletes who reside out of state. Athletes who live in the city, however, pay only a one percent fee. Pittsburgh …

February 23, 2016 NFL

NFL Required to Hand Over More Than $100M to its Players Association

In a ruling handed down last week by arbitrator Stephen Burbank, the NFL has been hit hard with a decision aimed directly at its pockets. The NFL Players Association recently announced that the league must fork over $120 million to the revenue pool the league and its players’ union share. The arbitrator found that the NFL had “mischaracterized” nearly $50 million of revenue a year that otherwise would have been paid to the players. The order comes after the Players Association discovered the issue in …

July 30, 2015 Litigation / NFL

Home Field Advantage: Minnesota Judge Sends Brady’s Suit to New York Court

On Thursday, July 30, a Minnesota federal judge ordered the NFL Players Association’s lawsuit on behalf of Tom Brady back to New York. The NFLPA brought this suit against the NFL in an attempt to vacate the four-game suspension that was upheld upon appeal on Tuesday.

Immediately after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell upheld the suspension, the league asked a federal judge in Manhattan to affirm the decision. Because the NFL took advantage of this “first-to-file” rule, the Minnesota judge ordered the transfer back to …

June 25, 2015 NFL

Pump Up The Appeal: NFL Commissioner Hears Tom Brady’s Testimony

Last week, on June 23, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell presided over Tom Brady’s appeal of his four-game suspension in the “Deflategate” case. However, there is currently no timetable for a decision on the appeal, as the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and the NFL Players Association calls for a decision “as soon as practicable.”

The four-game suspension arose out of an investigation into the “Deflategate” scandal, where footballs were found to have been deflated to below the permissible limit under league rules. Attorney Ted …

June 25, 2015 Litigation / NFL

Battle over Benefits: NFL Denies Claims it Wrongfully Withheld Payments to Retiree

The NFL is currently in the early stages of defending yet another lawsuit in connection with injuries allegedly sustained by a former athlete while playing in the NFL. In this case, Jesse Solomon – former linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Miami Dolphins – is seeking increased disability benefits for injuries he claims arose out of his time in the NFL.

Solomon claims that he has been denied approximately $100,000 in disability benefits per year due to his retirement plan’s …

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 …