Minneapolis (AP)-NFL has rejected a request from the office of a conflict of interest waiver to represent a group of players seeking to join the anti-trust battle against the league.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Thursday that the league was informed of the negative. The firm was later identified as Barnes & Thornburg in Indianapolis.
Aiello said it would be inappropriate to allow the company to work with players in a claim against the NFL, while one of its partners represent the league in licensing music for shows on the network NFL and NFL Films.
"We do not know the details of the claims to be claimed or the players allegedly involved, can not consent to the company's request to grant a waiver," Aiello said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
Cafferty Faucher Bryan CLOB lawyer said that his company had "discussions about some players who want a more representative voice" in the legal battle. CLOB but said Thursday he is referring to the NFL, not Cafferty Faucher, and said his firm has represented the NFL in all cases.
Sports Business Journal reported that the group wants its voice in the negotiations of the work is about 70 players upset by the collective bargaining talks broke off last month. Clobes told the AP the number is "far from the 70" and the discussions did not indicate dissatisfaction with the representation of 10 players from which the applicants in a lawsuit filed March 11.
It had expired when the CBA and the union disbanded to pursue the antitrust case. The league responded by ordering the lockout.
Players asked U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson to stop immediately all Lock 'hearing on April 6. His decision is expected soon.
NFL has also supported the filing in court Thursday that the players do not earn millions of dollars in damages after a federal judge sentenced a different league of disputes over four billion U.S. dollars income from broadcasting rights.
U.S. District Judge David Doty decided on March 1, NFL not to maximize revenue from both parties to share when he negotiated the last round of TV contracts are extended networks.
The players wanted recipes "on the table" in 2009 and 2010, but lawyers for the league said Thursday there is nothing to indicate network would have paid over these years to eliminate labor laws that would stop the money from the NFL, but no games were played in 2011.
The league argues that because a special master to Doty already awarded $ 6.9 million in damages for the players, there is no legal basis for their request. NFL wrote that lawyers for the players "never claimed, argued or briefed the issue of punitive damages" so far, and accused them of trying to "guess" special master Stephen Burbank with this strategy.
The players called the "war chest" of $ 4 billion to stay away from the owners to not be used to "continue to fund" the blockade against them. They also requested at least three times the total amount of damages awarded by the court.
Doty will chair a hearing May 12 to review the claim.
Players use a written complaint by the finance expert David Schulte in his last appearance on March 31 to claim damages, but the NFL responded Thursday that the prior testimony of Schulte before the special master in contradiction with the last request.
According to court documents, Schulte Burbank said he had no "idea" of how to evaluate precisely the appropriate amount of damages.
