The National Hockey League filed its amicus brief with the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in support of the NFL in the lawsuit Brady vs. NFL. The NFL is appealing the decision to lift the lockout with the Eighth Circuit, saying the league will suffer irreparable harm if the lockout is permanently lifted. The District Court ruled just the opposite and held that the players are and will suffer irreparable harm if the lockout continues.
In the brief, the NHL states that all American professional sports leagues will be impacted by the ruling in the NFL’s labor dispute and that a union decertifying should not be a valid negotiating tactic. The NFL players decertified as a union on March 11 after they were unable to agree to a new collective bargaining agreement with the league.
The NHL states in the brief that, “The NHL has a direct interest in ensuring that the determination of terms and conditions of employment for NHL players is the product of a bona fide labor process rather than the “lever” of potential antitrust liability.”
The NHL had a lockout in 2004-05 and the entire hockey season was canceled before a new CBA was agreed upon between that league and their players in July, ’05. During that time, Bob Batterman, one of the NFL’s lead attorneys served as outside counsel the NHL.
More stories you might like
