Retired NFLers Trial Features Hostile Cross Examination
By Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer, SportsBusiness Journal
Yesterday’s day three of the trial pitting a class of 2,067 retired NFL players seeking allegedly unpaid licensing income from the players union featured the hostile cross examination of Doug Allen, the former head of Players Inc., the NFLPA’s marketing and licensing arm. The interchange between Allen and plaintiffs’ attorney Peter Parcher grew so intense, that when one lawyer complained the courtroom was cold, the judge, William Alsup, responded, “You’re sitting too far away from the heat that is being generated.” At one point, NFLPA lead counsel Jeff Kessler accused Parcher of making faces when Allen responded, which the judge disagreed with. Parcher did not finish his cross examination, and Allen, currently the national Exec Dir of the Screen Actors Guild, will return Monday to the federal court house in S.F. when the trial resumes. On the stand, Allen differed with his former boss, late NFLPA Exec Dir Gene Upshaw, whose deposition testimony had him saying the union did not actively market the retired players. Upshaw suddenly died on August 20. Allen, who left the union last year, had spent much of his testimony saying he had spent over a decade fruitlessly trying to get licensees to sign retired players. But Upshaw in his initial deposition comments that were read by Parcher, said when asked if the NFLPA makes efforts to market retired players prior to any of them being requested by a licensee, “Not really.” Allen disagreed with this response. Upshaw’s response was later amended under agreement by the lawyers to read, “If they make a request there is no need to make an effort, so no, not really.” Allen said he did not entirely agree with this statement either. The point is important to the plaintiffs’ case because they are arguing that the NFLPA failed in its fiduciary duty to market retired players.
EA MOTION DENIED: Before cross examination began, a motion by Electronic Arts to seal financial information in its latest license with the NFLPA, which will be included as an exhibit, was turned down by the judge. EA seemed unaware a whole host of documents, including many of its licenses, the most recent dating to ‘05, had already been unsealed. The judge used similar language in response to EA’s lawyer as he did last month.
|
Related Stories By Company
|
Related Stories By Sport
|
Bears Deny Rift With NBC
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Gruden Committed To Improving On "MNF"
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Obama To Appear In PSA With Three NFLers
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
NFL Forms New Player Advisory Forum
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
NFLPA Urges Agents To Have Clients Sign GLA
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
|
Bills Owner Prepared To Make Big Changes
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Bears Deny Rift With NBC
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
MSFC Threatens Vikings With Penalties
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Gruden Committed To Improving On "MNF"
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Obama To Appear In PSA With Three NFLers
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
|
|
