January 13, 2017 Concussions / Litigation / NCAA

NCAA Faces Another Concussion Class Action Over Breach of Protective Duty

The NCAA faces another potential class action after several former college football players filed suit in Indiana federal court attacking the organization’s concussion protocol, or lack thereof.

Some might say the organization should have seen it coming in light of the modified $75 million dollar medical monitoring settlement the NCAA reached with players last May. The original settlement was modified out of concerns that the settlement would preclude players from bringing individual personal injury claims based on contract principles, and left open the possibility of …

October 20, 2016 NCAA

Under a Microscope: NCAA Reviewing Academic Standards of Division I Student-Athletes

On October 13, 2016, the NCAA announced that it opened an overarching review on its academic standards for Division I student-athletes. The target of this investigation is to maintain academic quality for these student-athletes, and the committee has already approved a new transfer policy in its effort to accomplish this goal that retroactively applies to the 2012-2013 academic year.

Under the old policy, when a student-athlete would transfer to another school, the transfer sometimes harmed the original school’s academic progress rate, or APR, which is …

April 3, 2015 Fraud / NCAA

UNC & NCAA Seek Dismissal of Academic Fraud Claims

On Monday, March 30, both the University of North Carolina and the NCAA filed motions to dismiss the lawsuit they’re facing brought by two former student-athletes for failing to provide them a meaningful education.

The lawsuit, filed in January, stems from the highly publicized academic fraud scandal where it was shown that the University of North Carolina had been offering “paper classes” to boost grades. These classes required very little work, lacked academic integrity, and provided failing student athletes the grade boost necessary to …

February 11, 2015 NCAA

NCAA Says Athletes Counsel Overcharged It for Attorney Fees

The NCAA wants more than 80% discount on the bill presented by the lawyers who represented the student-athlete plaintiffs in the O’Bannon case pursuant to a judgment in that case.

In a court filing, the NCAA argued that since the court’s decision in the O’Bannon case was a “limited success” as it only allowed players to share licensing revenue but awarded no damages, $9.1 million was more reasonable than the plaintiffs lawyers’ demand of $51 million. Further, it accused the plaintiffs legal team …

October 26, 2014 Litigation / NCAA

NCAA & Division I Schools are Named in FLSA Lawsuit

On Monday, October 20, the NCAA and all of its member schools were named defendants in an FLSA action alleging violations for failure to pay employees the federal minimum wage. The plaintiff in this action is yet another former student-athlete seeking compensation for participating in NCAA athletics.

Samantha Sackos attended the University of Houston and played for the Division I women’s soccer team. Sackos brought this suit, naming the NCAA and each Div. I school, alleging the schools’ refusal to pay student-athletes under the …