Posted on 08 July 2011. Tags: choice, Circuit, decertification, Eighth, eighth circuit rules, Judge Nelson, legal, Lockout, matter, Nfl, NFLPA, page decision, rules, site
Five weeks ago, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit heard oral arguments on whether or not Judge Susan Nelson’s decision to end the lockout ought to be upheld or overturned. At the end of the hearing, Judge Kermit Bye urged the parties to work out a resolution, hinting that neither side would like the ruling.
Throughout the past five weeks, it appeared that the Eighth Circuit was holding the ruling unless and until the negotiations fizzled out. Given that the Eighth Circuit had agreed to expedite all aspects of the appeal, the ongoing delay seemed to confirm that suspicion.
But the clock finally has run out. The Eighth Circuit has posted at its internet site a 34-page decision that strikes down Judge Nelson’s choice and enables the lockout to continue.
Specifically, the Eighth Circuit ruled that the Norris-LaGuardia Act prevents courts from issuing orders that end strikes or lockouts. Judge Bye, to no surprise, disagreed with the ruling.
While it appears to be a big win for the NFL, it wasn’t unexpected. And it’s far from the complete win the NFL wanted at this stage. As to the critically essential question of regardless of whether the nonstatutory labor exemption survives the decertification of the NFLPA, the Eighth Circuit created no ruling — which indicates that even though the lockout can continue, a chance remains that the lockout later will be discovered to be illegal, exposing the NFL to a potential verdict of $ 12 billion or a lot more if the 2011 season is lost.
We feared all along that the Eighth Circuit would problem a ruling that dramatically modifications the dynamics of the scenario as the parties were close to resolving the situation. And there’s a chance that the parties will will need to tap the brakes and evaluate the ruling prior to continuing to talk.
In the end, they ought to agree that the ruling modifications nothing. As expected, the lockout may continue. As expected, the players have the ability to pursue a gargantuan verdict if the lockout wipes out normal-season games.
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Posted on 05 June 2011. Tags: after, Before, Circuit, deal, Eighth, eighth circuit rules, Judge Nelson, legal proceedings, Mike Freeman, Nfl, NFLPA, rules, ruling, strike, time, Today, winner
We’ve seen somewhere today a suggestion that the renewed talks between the NFL and the NFLPA* will continue until the Eighth Circuit issues a ruling on the appeal of Judge Nelson’s order lifting the lockout, and that following the ruling the shift in the leverage will assist nail down a final deal.
That’s precisely what shouldn’t occur.
On several occasions, the NFL has said that it desires the next labor deal to be fair to both sides, so that neither the owners nor the players will really feel compelled in two or three years to pull the plug and take a stand. The best way to craft a win-win agreement comes not after one side “wins” this critical phase of the legal proceedings, but before.
If they wait until there’s a clear winner and a clear loser on the question of regardless of whether the lockout will be lifted (and, in spite of Judge Kermit Bye’s admonition that neither side will like the ruling, there likely will be a clear winner and a clear loser), a win-win outcome will occur only if the clear winner decides to be uncharacteristically magnanimous. So the time to do a lasting deal is now, before the Eighth Circuit rules.
Mike Freeman of CBSSports.com mentioned on Twitter earlier nowadays that “multiple sources” tell him a deal “could” be reached before the Eighth Circuit rules. With out question, it need to be.
And to the extent that anyone fears the two sides are playing beat the clock, with a game-changing ruling from the Eighth Circuit springing up just as the parties close in on an accord, it’s secure to assume that the folks in St. Louis will be keeping tabs on the mediation process that has been coordinated by Judge Nelson. The court system constantly prefers the parties discovering their own justice to imposing justice upon them, particularly in high-profile instances like this one.
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Posted on 04 June 2011. Tags: “relatively, Antitrust Lawsuit, Brady, Circuit, component portion, confident”, deal, enterprise organization, labor, news, Nfl, quarterback, reached, ride, Tom Brady, Tom Curran
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady applied his name to the antitrust lawsuit that landed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, and then he went out for a ride and he by no means went back. (I can’t recall ever making a Springsteen reference, and that’s now two in one day.)
But Brady apparently is keeping a close eye on the litigation that bears his name. And he said throughout halftime of a charity touch football game on Friday night that he’s “relatively confident” a deal will be reached, according to Tom Curran of CSNNE.com.
“There’s been a lot of positive news from both sides,” Brady said. “Everyone’s working challenging for a great outcome and I’m confident that a lot of reasonable folks will come to a really reasonable agreement.”
As Curran points out, Brady didn’t elaborate on the “positive news from both sides.” The fact that he’s the lead plaintiff suggests that he possibly has been given an update.
Brady also explained that the players remain unified. “The players, we all stick together,” Brady said. “We understand how important we all are to every other. A lot of guys actually care about the game and the guys that have been around for a although realize what it takes for us to grow the league, to be part of the enterprise of the NFL and to be great representatives for the NFL and to leave the NFL in far better shape than when we came into it. I believe that’s the responsibility of all players, young or old.”
It all sounds good, but if/when Brady thinks he might lose a shot his fourth championship in 2011, there’s a excellent chance he’ll be privately saying something much diverse than that. Brady doesn’t require the cash but, as he repeatedly has said, his favorite Super Bowl victory is the next one.
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Posted on 31 May 2011. Tags: Adam Schefter, Circuit, days, doesn’t, eighth circuit, Getty, getty images, location, memorial day weekend, place location, regular, season, starts, stay, turn, until
It’s fitting, we suppose, that the nation emerges from the three-day Memorial Day weekend with a proverbial splash of cold water regarding the lingering lockout.
As Adam Schefter of ESPN points out on his Twitter page, only 100 days remain until the Saints and Packers are scheduled to square off at Lambeau Field on Thursday, September 8 to launch the 2011 season.
In three days, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit will hear arguments regarding the question of no matter whether the lockout should be lifted. If it is, it will then grow to be likely if not particular that the 2011 season will be played. If, as currently expected, the lockout remains in place, the season will start on time only if the two sides work out a new labor deal.
Regardless of whether or not a given observer is pro-player, pro-owner, or pro-they-all-should-go-to-hell, we all ought to agree that both sides want to commit to meaningful, continuous negotiations, if the Eighth Circuit enables the lockout to stay in place. And the procedure should commence with the players responding to the supply(s) created by the NFL on March 11 and May 16.
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Posted on 16 May 2011. Tags: appeals, appeals court, Circuit, Court, court grants, Court Of Appeals, eighth circuit, Grants, Lockout, motion, news, Nfl, Nfl Lockout, NFL’s, ruling, stay, still
The NFL lockout is still on.
According to numerous reports, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has granted the NFL’s motion for a stay, meaning the lockout remains in effect.
In other words, the owners got what they wanted, and the players will be disappointed.
The timing of the news that the appeals court has granted the NFL’s motion for a stay comes as a surprise, simply because on Friday the court clerk said not to expect a ruling on the remain to come on Monday. But the ruling on the stay has, in truth, come on Monday.
So now we’ll all wait yet another three weeks, until the Eighth Circuit hears arguments on the appeal. And the players will remain locked out.
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Posted on 16 May 2011. Tags: cares, Circuit, eighth circuit, Magistrate Judge, mediation, Nfl, option choice, plan strategy, resumes, road approach, strategy, Today, whilst
On numerous prior occasions this year, the NFL and the players have gotten together for mediation. Previously, each meeting was met with a sense of optimism, albeit increasingly muted.
This team around, as the parties return to Minnesota these days for further negotiations with U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan presiding, no one is thinking that any progress will be produced. Numerous basically aren’t even paying attention.
And for good reason. The two sides appear to be committed to waiting for a ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, with the players and the league equally confident they’ll win.
The players knew the decertification-litigation chaos technique would, if effective, end the lockout and allow the players to continue negotiations while operating from a position of ultimate strength — preventing the league from twisting the players’ arms until they accept the owners’ terms. If that approach fails, the players will be needed to return to the drawing board and devise a plan for digging in and missing game checks in order to have a hint of leverage at the bargaining table.
For the owners, losing at the Eighth Circuit means the doors will be forced open (assuming the unlikely total shutdown choice isn’t pursued), and the owners will have to determine on a set of rules for 2011, knowing that any rules other than the Thunder Road approach (i.e., “the rules are there ain’t no rules”) will be challenged as a violation of the antitrust laws.
Every side seems to have accepted the risk of losing, although still pushing for victory. It is their right to approach the situation this way, but it makes mediation at this point a total waste of everyone’s time.
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Posted on 06 May 2011. Tags: Circuit, Collective Bargaining Agreement, David Doty, delay, michael gans, Mike Vick, motion, Nfl, position, ruling, stay, swing vote, theory
Earlier this week, the Clerk of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit suggested that the court might not rule at all on the NFL’s pending motion to stay the lifting of the lockout whilst the appeal of Judge Nelson’s decision to end the lockout proceeds. The statement from Michael Gans to USA These days raised eyebrows, given that the paperwork has been submitted by the parties and the issue otherwise is teed up for consideration.
A theory has emerged relating to the possibility that the Eighth Circuit simply won’t rule on the motion for a remain.
In 2009, Judge Steven M. Colloton agreed with the players in an appeal concerning Mike Vick’s bonus cash from the Falcons, and regarding the league’s effort to bump Judge David Doty from his position as the overseer of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Colloton, who was nominated for his position by President George W. Bush and thus arguably predisposed to enter pro-company rulings, is viewed in some league circles as a possible swing vote in the Tom Brady antitrust lawsuit.
Last week, Judge Colloton and Judge Duane Benton agreed to give the NFL a temporary stay, with Judge Kermit Bye strongly disagreeing. As to the motion for a full remain, some think that Benton will side with the league, Bye will side with the players, and Colloton could go either way. And so the thinking is that Colloton may possibly be reluctant to tip his hand as to the appeal itself by picking one side or the other when it comes to the motion for a remain.
Of course, that thinking could amount to over-thinking. But we’re thinking that the idle time throughout the stutter-step lockout has prompted so significantly thinking. Regardless of the reason for the delay, the Eighth Circuit’s failure to act on the motion for a stay is the newest unexpected development in a growing string of them.
Which of course indicates that a ruling on the motion for a stay probably will be announced later right now.
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Posted on 04 May 2011. Tags: Circuit, Clerk, clerk of the court, Court, Eighth, eighth circuit, issue, matter, michael gans, motion, rule, says, simply, stay, taking into consideration, Usa Today
As we continue to wait for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit to issue a ruling regarding the league’s motion to stay the order lifting the lockout until the ruling can be reviewed, the Clerk of the Court tells USA These days that there possibly will be no ruling on the pending motion.
“I don’t have any indication whether or not there is going to be any further ruling on the motion for a remain,” Michael Gans told Gary Mihoces. Gans also said the motion for a stay is “still pending,” and that the “court may possibly rule and the court may possibly not” rule on the motion.
Last Friday, the panel that will hear the appeal voted 2-1 to grant the league’s motion for a temporary stay, while considering the motion for a stay through the resolution of the appeal. Because separate briefs had been submitted on the question of regardless of whether a remain will be granted, including a final brief from the NFL on Monday, May possibly 2, it’s reasonable to anticipate that a ruling on the motion will at some point be produced. Then again, this is one of the fundamental realities of the court system. Very typically, courts do what they want to do when they want to do it, without giving any explanation or notice.
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