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 …
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Deflategate: NFL Submits Reply Brief in Appeal of District Court Decision
On Monday, December 21, 2015, counsel for the NFL submitted its reply brief to the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in the “Deflategate” litigation.
In the 2014 NFL Playoffs, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was allegedly involved in a scheme to advantageously tamper with game balls used by Brady in the AFC championship game versus the Indianapolis Colts. The NFL suspended Brady for the first four games of the 2015 Regular Season.
Brady appealed the decision to an arbitrator, who, through the provisions …
Continue ReadingGoodell Not All-Powerful: Brady Blasts Commissioner’s Role in Suspension Appeal
On Monday December 7, 2015, the National Football League Players Association and New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady jointly file a response brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, arguing that Roger Goodell over-stepped his boundaries in slamming the future hall of famer with a four game suspension for his role in the “Deflategate” scandal. On September 3, District Court Judge Richard Berman overturned Brady’s suspension, determining that the NFL and the Commissioner’s Office failed to abide by the …
Continue ReadingLet’s Get This Thing Rollin’: Second Circuit Grants Motion for Expedited Appeal in Deflategate
On Friday September 25, 2015, the NFL filed a motion in the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals requesting that its appeal of the district court’s “Deflategate” decision be expedited. Circuit clerk Catherine O’Hagan Wolfe granted the NFL’s motion on September 29, 2015, therefore reducing the ordinary 10-12-month appellate period.
The district court’s decision, issued by Judge Richard Berman on September 3, 2015, vacated the NFL’s 4-game suspension of quarterback Tom Brady. The NFL superstar was alleged to have been involved in a scandal to …
Continue ReadingAdrian Peterson Suspension: NFL Players Association Invokes Brady Opinion
On September 3, 2015, a New York federal judge overturned New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s four-game suspension, and the decision has now found its way into Adrian Peterson’s lawsuit against the NFL.
In 2014, the NFL suspended Minnesota Viking running back Adrian Peterson after allegations surfaced that he had used a wooden switch on his four-year-old son. The NFL Players Association filed a lawsuit on Peterson’s behalf, and the suspension was eventually overturned by a Minnesota federal judge. The judge — U.S. District Judge …
Continue ReadingThe NFL Files its Pre-Argument Statement in Appealing Brady Suspension Ruling
The NFL filed its “pre-argument statement” in the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday September 17, 2015. The NFL is appealing the September 3, 2015 district court decision of Judge Richard Berman, which vacated the NFL’s 4-game suspension of superstar quarterback Tom Brady.
The pre-argument statement is separate from the filing of a memorandum of law—the statement only describes the legal theories the NFL will plan to make on appeal. Both the NFL and the NFL Players’ Association (the representative of Tom Brady) …
Continue ReadingA Deal is a Deal: the NFLPA’s Motion to Reopen Past Litigation is Denied
On Tuesday September 8, 2015, a federal district judge denied a motion filed on behalf of the NFL Players’ Association, which attempted to reopen the long-running “Reggie White” case. Ending in 1993 with a settlement agreement, the Reggie White case was a class action antitrust lawsuit against the NFL. The settlement ultimately led to the league’s current unrestricted free agent system.
However, the CBA agreement arising from the White settlement was not renewed, and it expired in 2011. This subsequently led to a lockout of …
Continue ReadingTom Brady & Deflategate: Goodbye Settlement, Hello Appeal?
On Monday August 31st, 2015 Tom Brady and the NFL met for their final settlement conference with the district court judge in the Deflategate litigation. Following the 2014 NFL Season, the league suspended quarterback Tom Brady for four games in relation to his alleged involvement with the impermissible deflation of footballs. The two parties did not reach a settlement agreement on Monday, however, which may show that both sides believe they have put forth a compelling case.
Nevertheless, in the end, the failure …
Continue ReadingNFLPA: Tom Brady Should’ve Been Fined, Not Suspended
In a letter to U.S. District Court Judge Richard M. Berman, NFL Players Association lawyer Jeffrey Kessler argued that Tom Brady should have been fined, not suspended, as required by the league’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Furthermore, Kessler claimed that even if the suspension was in compliance with the CBA, it is still inappropriate because Brady was not given a notice of his suspension in advance.
Kessler’s letter is a response to a filing by the NFL arguing that courts have the authority to …
Continue ReadingBreaking Phones and Taking Names: Tom Brady States at Hearing That He Usually Destroys Old Devices
At a hearing on Tuesday in front of a New York federal court, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady alleged that he usually destroys his old cellphones in order to protect his personal and business data.
The suit was originally filed by the National Football League Management Council (NFL) against the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), and ultimately boiled down to a claim that Brady had engaged in conduct “detrimental to the integrity of, or public confidence in, the game of professional football[.]” The …
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