U.S. Women's Soccer Mediation

The World Cup competing U.S. women’s national team (USWNT) players and the U.S. Soccer Federation will mediate over pay equity and workplace dignity issues following the conclusion of the tournament in France next month. U.S. Soccer and the 28 USWNT players suing the federation have tentatively agreed to mediation in the equal pay fight on the disparity between U.S. men's and women's national team players. Women players engaged in legal action, including filing with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and suing U.S. Soccer in federal District Courts. The USWNT Players’ Association and U.S. Soccer had agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement that ensured games would continue to be played, but failed to resolve many grievances like workplace discrimination on the basis of gender. Salary and workplace discrepancies are highlighted by global dominance of the U.S. women, especially when compared to the lackluster men's team. USWNT players contend they earn 62% less than males and have inferior travel, second-rate training facilities and more dangerous playing conditions. Employers accused of Equal Pay Act violations typically insist lawful explanations exist for differences in pay between male and female workers. The women also contend U.S. Soccer is violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which makes it illegal for employers to use the gender of workers to determine pay. Employers often rebut the assertion that gender played any role in pay calculations citing supervisors’ evaluations of employees to distinguish them on bases other than their sex. Of course, U.S. Soccer rejects these and related claims, saying players negotiated the very rules that they are now contesting. It will be interesting to see what becomes of this dispute and whether the U.S. women can come home as champions heading into the negotiations. See full stories here-- https://lat.ms/2ZLPCiv and https://yhoo.it/2ID5kae

NFL Settles with QB Kaepernick

Quarterback Colin Kaepernick and former teammate Eric Reid reached a settlement with the NFL regarding their collusion grievance against the NFL. Both players were alleging league owners colluded to keep them out of the NFL. The decision to kneel during the national anthem made Kaepernick a divisive sports figure. Kaepernick either sat on the bench or kneeled during “The Star-Spangled Banner” before each game in protest for oppression of people of color and ongoing issues with police brutality. The last time Kaepernick played was in 2016 when he went 1-10 with the San Francisco 49ers. However, that litigation appears to be over and Kaepernick’s attorney said he still wants to play in the NFL. In a joint statement last week, the parties explained only that they had engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives and as a a result of those discussions, decided to resolve the pending grievances. Of course, the resolution of the matter is subject to a confidentiality agreement and so they state there will be no further comment by any party. Despite this, the media has continued to speculate on the settlement and in one report, Mike Freeman said his sources were speculating that the payout was in the $60-80 million range. Others, like Dan Patrick revealed that a source told him that the settlement could be as low as the $5 million range. Still others like Mike Florio, despite stating most settlements require the parties to keep the details of the deal quiet and confidential, wonders when the details will leak. He goes on to say the NFL’s 32 teams will know the amount, because they’ll each be paying a share and that it takes only one owner to get the number out, making it impossible for the league office to track down the leak. Only time will tell. See news coverage here-- https://bit.ly/2NerBvB and https://bit.ly/2IlOvT8 and https://bit.ly/2TVX2gO and NFL statement-- https://bit.ly/2SbbLmu

Court Approves NFL Concussion Settlement

After the first deal was rejected by the trial court just over a year ago, a second deal doing away with a $675 million cap on the fund from which injured former players would draw was reached. Reportedly, the National Football League (NFL) projects 6,000 of some 20,000 retired football players will suffer from dementia or Alzheimer's disease. The approved settlement could payout more than $1 billion. Plaintiffs lawyers not involved in negotiations on the second deal may still appeal over previously expressed concerns about the settlement terms. One attempt to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit failed last fall, with that court declining to exercise jurisdiction on review of an order granting or denying class certification. The issue on appeal involved preliminary approval of the settlement and granting conditional certification of the class for settlement purposes. Even now that approval of the settlement is final, it could be appealed which would delay benefits to eligible players. Failure to compensate players with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is the primary objection to the deal which only compensates for CTE if the player has died. The case faced significant legal hurdles at the start that could have landed the case in arbitration instead of federal court. At the outset, the district judge signaled a preference for settlement of the case, believing that the interests of all parties would be best served by a negotiated resolution. The settlement has been characterized as avoiding litigating thousands of complex individual claims over many years and providing immediate relief and support. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and team owners claim they wanted to "do the right thing" for former players with neurological conditions who believe their problems stem from on-field concussions. The lawsuit accused the league of hiding known risks of concussions for decades to return players to games and protect its image. See more here-- http://bit.ly/1x1uRxX and settlement info here-- http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-32420600 and http://bit.ly/1bAyhjS and www.nflconcussionsettlement.com

NFL Concussion Settlement Questioned

This week, a hearing took place to consider the deal covering thousands of former players that settled with the National Football League (NFL) over concussion-related suits last summer. The league is reportedly paying $765 million for medical benefits and injury compensation to retired players, as well as funding medical exams, research and litigation expenses. The settlement has been characterized as avoiding litigating literally thousands of complex individual claims over many years and providing immediate relief and support. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the owners reportedly wanted to "do the right thing" for former players with neurological conditions who believe their problems stem from on-field concussions. The lawsuits accused the league of hiding known risks of concussions for decades to return players to games and protect its image. For the lawyers who negotiated the proposed settlement of the NFL's massive concussion litigation, the agreement was groundbreaking. For the lawyers whose clients objected to the settlement, it fails to compensate players suffering from the "industrial disease of football," and it allows the league to escape any determination of whether the league concealed the effects of head injuries from its players. Now a judge must decide whether the agreement is fair, adequate and reasonable, following a lengthy hearing and request for written briefs before a decision. Defending the deal, NFL and the players' attorneys insisted they wanted to help suffering players now, emphasizing difficulty in litigating causation between blows to the head and brain damage known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in these football concussion cases. See full story here-- http://es.pn/1xVGuVJ and settlement info here-- https://www.nflconcussionsettlement.com

NCAA Concussion Case Mediation

Just as the NFL settles its concussion case with former players, the NCAA is reportedly entering a mediation with former Eastern Illinois players on November 1st. Retired federal jurist, Layn Phillips, is expected to be the mediator and is known for helping the NFL and NFLPA reach a recent settlement in that dispute. Plaintiffs are seeking money damages, as well as long-term medical monitoring by the NCAA and stricter concussion guidelines. Since the lawsuit was filed two years ago, the NCAA hired a chief medical officer to address the concussion issue. Attorneys for plaintiffs are still seeking class action certification for the lawsuit potentially affecting thousands of players. The NCAA's case was damaged by discovery of emails and information showing that less than half of NCAA schools require a player to see a physician post-concussion. NCAA chief legal officer, Donald Remy, has stated the association is willing to consider reasonable mediation options that address student-athlete health and safety concerns. The NCAA still faces lawsuits in the O'Bannon licensing case, from Coach Paterno's family, and on appeal regarding investigation of former USC assistant coach Todd McNair. See story here-- http://cbsprt.co/1fzXEQ6 and NCAA site commentary on concussion management-- http://bit.ly/18XKJq9

Armstrong Arbitrations

Though the Lance Armstrong saga seems about over, arbitration of U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) charges continues for some, including the former team director, Johan Bruyneel, who is challenging the agency. Cycling’s governing body Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) today stripped Lance Armstrong of his 7 Tour de France titles and banned him for life, following a USADA report from accusing him of leading a doping program on his U.S. Postal Service and Discovery Channel teams. UCI's President announced that the federation accepted USADA’s report on Armstrong and would not appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Eleven former teammates testified against Armstrong, who denies doping based on his having passed hundreds of drug tests. Armstrong chose not to fight USADA in one of the agency’s arbitration hearings, arguing the process was biased against him. Sponsors Nike and Trek have since dropped him, and Armstrong also stepped down last week as chairman of Livestrong, the cancer awareness charity he founded. The cyclist could still face further sports sanctions and legal challenges, including civil lawsuits from ex-sponsors or even the U.S. government. Read more: http://bit.ly/T798LY