Evans v. Arizona Cardinals Football Club LLC

Intentional Misrepresentation and Civil Conspiracy

Northern District

U.S. District Judge William Alsup

Defense Lawyers: Allen J. Ruby, Jack P. DiCanio, Patrick Hammon, Niels J. Melius, Sean H. Jeong, Ayesha Minhaj, Justine A. Kentla Cho, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates; Sonya D. Winner, Laura Flahive Wu, Rebecca A. Jacobs, Benjamin C. Block, Derek Ludwin, Gregg H. Levy, Covington & Burling LLP; Daniel L. Nash, Marla Axelrod (former), Stacey R. Eisenstein, Nathan J. Oleson, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP

Plaintiff’s Lawyers: William Sinclair, Steven D. Silverman, Stephen G. Grygiel, Phillip J. Closius, Alexander Williams Jr., Andrew G. Slutkin, Steven N. Leitess, Joseph Murray Jr., Silverman Thompson Slutkin White LLC; Mel T. Owens, Namanny Byrne & Owens; Stuart A. Davidson, Mark J. Dearman, Jason H. Alperstein, Janine D. Arno (former), Rachel L. Jensen, Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP

On the heels of major litigation concerning widespread concussion issues in the NFL, 12 former players and the wife of a former player sued the NFL in Maryland federal court, alleging a decades-long conspiracy perpetrated by leadership to pump players with drugs, disregarding health concerns, to get injured players back in play as quickly as possible.

In a putative class action, the players told the court that team doctors and leadership disregarded their well-being, falsely informing them that the side effects of painkillers were negligible when they weren’t. The case as filed presented $1 billion in liability for the league and its 32 teams. Evans et al. v. Arizona Cardinals Football Club LLC et al., 4:16-cv-01030 (N.D. Cal., filed March 1, 2016).

Represented by powerhouse attorneys from Covington & Burling LLP, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates, and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, the NFL began chipping away at the suit. Their first move: bringing the suit to California. There, case action became a confusing jumble of choice of law issues involving the 22 states in which the defendant teams play. But in a series of summary judgment motions, the NFL’s attorneys were able to convince U.S. District Judge William Alsup of San Francisco to strip the case down, bit by bit.

First, Alsup tossed out Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act claims, citing the plaintiff players’ failure to properly claim damages under the law’s requirements. Next, he removed 26 teams from the case due to failing to meet state law pleading requirements. The players amended their complaint, but with little success. In one ruling, Alsup described the pleading as containing “disorganized, frequently boilerplate, and sometimes contradictory statements.” He dismissed the claims from all but two remaining plaintiffs.

Two months later, the final blow came: Alsup said that the remaining two players couldn’t proceed with the suit because of workers’ compensation exclusivity. Now, it’s on appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The players’ first brief is due this month.

— Nicolas Sonnenburg