The first payouts from the NFL concussion settlement -- some worth as much as $5M -- "have been approved" almost four years after the league "agreed to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to ex-players who said the league had concealed the dangers of concussions from them," according to Ken Belson of the N.Y. TIMES. The registration process ends today, "closing the window during which players can potentially receive cash awards." More than 18,400 out of the roughly 21,000 retired players have registered, a "necessary step before they can undergo medical tests and apply for benefits." About $100M in awards has been "approved so far." After today's deadline, the roughly 2,500 ex-players who have "not registered may be entirely shut out of the settlement, which is expected to cost" the NFL more than $1B over the life of the 65-year deal. Finding players has "not always been easy," as records "kept by teams and the league, particularly those from decades ago, were incomplete." Despite that, the 88% registration rate is "extraordinarily high for a class-action settlement." It also "raises the possibility that the league may have to pay a lot more than expected to players in the coming years" (N.Y. TIMES, 8/5). WFAN-AM's Boomer Esiason said with a $5M payout, “you’re not a burden to your family, and you really have no choice but to opt into the settlement.” Esiason: “Let’s say 10 years from now they’ll be able to diagnose whether or not you have CTE while you’re alive. That won’t matter. That’s basically carved out. The only people that are receiving anything for CTE are the players that have unfortunately passed away, and they’re using CTE as the reason as to why” ("Boomer & Carton," WFAN, 8/7).
SETTLING WITH INSURANCE COMPANIES: The NFL has settled with six of the dozens of insurance companies involved in litigation over insuring the concussion settlement. The disclosure, made in a court filing Friday, also notes the NFL is in settlement talks with other insurers, though not all of them. The six are not identified by name in the filing. John Hall, an NFL outside counsel at Covington & Burling, said the league declined to comment on the settlement. The league and insurers countersued one another in '12, though the case had largely been stayed until earlier this year. The insurers claim the NFL knew of the dangers of playing football, and so they should not have to cover the roughly $1B settlement. The NFL sought to prevent discovery in the insurers case until all litigation surrounding concussions was exhausted. However, the judge overseeing the case ordered discovery, and the parties are scheduled to meet tomorrow in a status conference to discuss progress in this regard. Since the ruling, a new judge, Andrea Masley, has taken over the case (Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer).
