There's a lot of discussion from well-respected lawyers about the sanctity of the CBA and how judges should be reluctant to interfere, even going to so far as to support the NFL's argument that the arbitrator is not only assess the facts but assess the fairness of the entire process (e.g. Pash's testimony would have been cumulative). One of the reasons Federal Courts do not want to overturn arbitration awards is that they don't want labor disputes clogging up the docket when they can be settled via a clear process.
One way to look at this is that judges should always or almost always deny an appeal of an arbitration. However, with the NFL, another way to look at it is the following: the NFL's process of executing the CBA is so rife with problems, that there are repeated appeals. Whether these appeals have been overturned or not, they all have one thing in common: the NFL's process sucks. If the process sucks, there will continue to be appeals, regardless of whether those appeals are successful as even if a federal court does not vacate, the publicity around it may produce pressure for things like the Tagliabue review etc. Berman could be thinking about how to minimize this circus going forward. Denying appeals for vacating does not seem to work. He might be considering excoriating the NFL to come up with a different process or to renegotiate that portion of the CBA. Brady presents a great opporutnity as both the facts and the process were rife with problems, problems that even the mainstream press sees and the general public seems to be tired of.
I'd be interested to hear from lawyers as to whether this is a legitimate approach Berman can take, given the potential for appeal to the next level.
One way to look at this is that judges should always or almost always deny an appeal of an arbitration. However, with the NFL, another way to look at it is the following: the NFL's process of executing the CBA is so rife with problems, that there are repeated appeals. Whether these appeals have been overturned or not, they all have one thing in common: the NFL's process sucks. If the process sucks, there will continue to be appeals, regardless of whether those appeals are successful as even if a federal court does not vacate, the publicity around it may produce pressure for things like the Tagliabue review etc. Berman could be thinking about how to minimize this circus going forward. Denying appeals for vacating does not seem to work. He might be considering excoriating the NFL to come up with a different process or to renegotiate that portion of the CBA. Brady presents a great opporutnity as both the facts and the process were rife with problems, problems that even the mainstream press sees and the general public seems to be tired of.
I'd be interested to hear from lawyers as to whether this is a legitimate approach Berman can take, given the potential for appeal to the next level.
