Alan Millstein: Brady's chances of en banc hearing dramatically improved with latest amicus filings

DaBruinz said:

If (when) en banc is granted, can they order discovery? Such as emails/documents/texts that passed between Goodell, Vincent, Kensil, Gardi, Pash, Miller, etc? Getting those into the light of day would really destroy the "integrity" that Goodell has claimed so much..

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GrogansArmy said:

You really think those exist anymore? Those have been deleted months ago. While its possible to extract the messages even though they've been deleted under normal circumstances, its also easy to perma delete them so there are no traces of the emails/messages left lying around - as long as you have enough money... which the NFL/Goodell does.

Hell I wouldn't be surprised if Goodell and his cronies all destroyed their phones once Berman ruled against them.

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DaBruinz said:

I also believe that, with discovery, we'd find out all sorts of juicy nuggets about the NFL that they don't want anyone to know. And it would lead to Goodell's ouster, imho..

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GrogansArmy said:

You really think those exist anymore? Those have been deleted months ago. While its possible to extract the messages even though they've been deleted under normal circumstances, its also easy to perma delete them so there are no traces of the emails/messages left lying around - as long as you have enough money... which the NFL/Goodell does.

Hell I wouldn't be surprised if Goodell and his cronies all destroyed their phones once Berman ruled against them.

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Patsfanin Philly said:

As they said about Watergate and other scandals, it's always the coverup.....

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Gumby said:

So FREAKIN what. SCOTUS decides what cases DESERVE to be decided. No supreme in his right mind would take on gotohell's appeal, let alone 4. roger can ring the doorbell all he wants, it is a private party and he has no invite.

I facetiously-humorously asked earlier in the thread , but for you and any of the other posters who keep saying gotohell will take it to SCOTUS: give me one solid argument that would necessitate SCOTUS to take his appeal?

There is already plenty of precedent/cases that establish arbitrator authority. Repeating that is unnecesary. Taking the case just to revalidate the brady side /lower court ruling just isnt done. And if they take it, that means they believe not just one but ALL FIVE of the below arguments against gotohell are completely wrong (if they agree with any one of the pro-brady arguments, they have no reason to take a gotohell appeal on the case), that is, they would be saying:

That just doesnt seem likely they would agree with all five (and that was just my layman's shorthand that probably left out some of Feinberg's arguments)

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fester said:

Let's assume that Brady/NFLPA get and win an en banc hearing. The Supremes have a bunch of interesting arbitration cases working their way through the circuits right now. There is also a bloc on the Court that is getting increasingly suspicious of mandatory arbitration and high power differential arbitration as applied in the United States at this time.

If Goodell/NFL appeals, bundling the question raised with other mandatory and high power differential arbitration cases could make sense. The Supremes do that all the time, the current Little Sisters of the Poor/Zubrik case on the birth control mandate in PPACA was a bundling of either six or seven distinct appeals in separate circuits where a common type of question was being argued. So if it is taken as a bundle, it could make sense for four or five Justices who aren't huge fans of some current arbitration practices to take Goodell et al as a slap down opportunity to expand doctrine/precedent.

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borg said:

If this link was already posted…my apologies.

Local arbitrator advises NFLPA..
The case for Tom Brady: An arbitrator’s take

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bbobbo said:

interesting reading the comments--they were mostly pro-brady.

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borg said:

I

I'm fascinated why the Washington Post has embraced the "cause" and continues to lead the charge vs. the NFL.

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The arbitration system for player discipline in professional football is similar to dispute resolution provisions in several labor-management areas in which a non-neutral (here, the Commissioner) serves as an arbitrator. But by agreeing to a non-neutral arbitrator for disciplinary appeals, the bargaining party – here, the NFL Players Association – does not forfeit all of the procedural protections applied in labor arbitrations. Agreeing to the Commissioner’s authority to hear disciplinary appeals is not the same thing as agreeing to allow the Commissioner to run amok.

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Patsfanin Philly said:

My thoughts exactly. Does anybody know if the Sarbanes-Oxley Act applies to the NFL? Originally designed for the accounting side of businesses, it also applies to record retention and email and makes it a criminal offense to tamper with email in response to a court order, i.e. subpoena for all records or a discovery order.
As they said about Watergate and other scandals, it's always the coverup.....

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bbobbo said:

interesting reading the comments--they were mostly pro-brady.

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SVN said:

Former Dolphins Coach's Legal Filing Against Ted Wells Rings Familiar Bell For 'DeflateGate'

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Wells also argued Turner’s push to depose nonparties Martin and Buffalo Bills guard Richie Incognito, whom Wells’ report fingered as the leader of the bullying culture, in consecutive weeks in Phoenix and San Francisco would unfairly burden him and his firm.

“The timing and location of the depositions imposes significant burden and cost on defendants, who will be forced to incur substantial expense to prepare for the depositions and make multiple cross-country trips,” Wells said

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Mack Herron said:

Listen carefully--can you hear the owners stepping up to restore some integrity to their enterprise and their names?

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The Commissioner’s actions were biased from the outset. The one-day appeal hearing was an awkward circus.

• No arbitrator, partial or impartial, should have allowed the “independent investigator’s” law firm to represent the NFL’s interests at the hearing and deny Brady access to potentially exonerating information.

• No arbitrator should have allowed the NFL’s General Counsel to avoid cross-examination about his role in preparing the very report on which the Commissioner based his punishment.

• No arbitrator acting in good faith should have issued a final award analogizing Brady’s “offense” to steroid use and without even mentioning or discussing the schedule of collectively bargained fines arguably applicable to such offenses.

• And certainly no reasonable arbitrator should have conjured up new grounds to support his own decision after he had imposed discipline on other discredited grounds.

These are the hallmarks of a fundamentally unfair arbitration and represent one of the rare exceptions where the courts can and should intervene.

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Mack Herron said:

The case for Tom Brady: An arbitrator’s take

Listen carefully--can you hear the owners stepping up to restore some integrity to their enterprise and their names?

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bbobbo said:

i guess you just need one believer, in this case Sally Jenkins, to affect the perceptions at an entire organization.

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