National Football League Players' Concussion Injury
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Case 2:12-md-02323-AB Document 6201 Filed 10/06/14 Page 1 of 125 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA IN RE: NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE PLAYERS’ CONCUSSION No. 2:12-md-02323-AB INJURY LITIGATION MDL No. 2323 Kevin Turner and Shawn Wooden, Civil Action No. 2:14-cv-00029-AB on behalf of themselves and others similarly situated, Plaintiffs, v. National Football League and NFL Properties, LLC, successor-in-interest to NFL Properties, Inc., Defendants. THIS DOCUMENT RELATES TO: ALL ACTIONS OBJECTION OF SEAN MOREY, ALAN FANECA, BEN HAMILTON, ROBERT ROYAL, RODERICK “ROCK” CARTWRIGHT, JEFF ROHRER, AND SEAN CONSIDINE TO CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT Case 2:12-md-02323-AB Document 6201 Filed 10/06/14 Page 2 of 125 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................................ 4 I. Procedural History .............................................................................................................. 4 A. Initial Litigation .......................................................................................................4 B. The January 6, 2014 Class Action Complaint and Initial Settlement ......................4 1. The Class Action Complaint ........................................................................5 a. The NFL’s Duty of Care and the MTBI Committee ........................6 b. Criticism of the MTBI Committee ...................................................7 c. The NFL’s Representations About Head Injuries ............................9 2. The Initial Settlement .................................................................................11 C. Objectors’ Motion To Intervene ............................................................................12 D. The Revised Settlement .........................................................................................13 1. Compensation ............................................................................................13 2. Eligibility ...................................................................................................14 3. The Release ................................................................................................16 4. Attorneys’ Fees ..........................................................................................16 E. Opposition to Preliminary Approval ......................................................................17 F. Preliminary Approval .............................................................................................17 II. Background of Objectors .................................................................................................. 18 ARGUMENT ................................................................................................................................ 19 I. The Lack of Adequate Representation Precludes Certification ........................................ 20 i Case 2:12-md-02323-AB Document 6201 Filed 10/06/14 Page 3 of 125 A. The Failure-To-Compensate-CTE Conflict Demonstrates Lack of Adequate Representation .......................................................................................22 1. Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) ..............................................22 2. CTE in the NFL ........................................................................................24 3. The Settlement Compensates Only a Few Prior Cases of CTE to the Exclusion of Current and Future Cases of CTE ........................................25 a. Arbitrary Limitation of CTE Awards ............................................25 b. The Representative Plaintiffs Did Not Protect the Interests of Class Members Who Suffer from or Who Are at Risk of Suffering from CTE .......................................................................27 c. There Is No Justification for the Settlement’s Failure To Compensate Current and Future Cases of CTE .............................29 B. The 75% Offsets Demonstrate Lack of Adequate Representation .......................33 C. The Failure To Credit Seasons Played in NFL Europe Demonstrates Lack of Adequate Representation ......................................................................................35 II. The Notice Is False, Misleading, and Inconsistent with Rule 23 and Due Process ......... 38 A. The Notice Contains Overtly False and Misleading Statements ..........................39 1. The Short Form Notice .............................................................................39 2. The Long Form Notice ..............................................................................41 B. The Notice Is Similar to Communications Courts Have Found Misleading in Other Contexts ......................................................................................................46 C. Class Counsel’s Propaganda Campaign Has Compounded the False and Misleading Nature of the Notice ...........................................................................49 D. False and Misleading Notice Has, in Fact, Misinformed Players and Falsely Assured Them That the Settlement Provides Benefits It Lacks ...........................53 III. The Settlement Is Unfair, Unreasonable, and Inadequate ................................................ 54 A. The Complete Absence of Discovery Weighs Against Approval of the Settlement ........................................................................................................56 ii Case 2:12-md-02323-AB Document 6201 Filed 10/06/14 Page 4 of 125 B. The NFL’s Ability To Withstand a Far Greater Judgment Than That Provided by the Settlement Weighs Against Approval of the Settlement ............58 C. The Negative Reaction of the Class Weighs Against Approval of the Settlement ...................................................................................60 D. The Risks of Establishing Liability and Damages Weigh Against Approval of the Settlement ...................................................................................62 1. Even Without Discovery, Publicly Available Information Shows the Strength of Plaintiffs’ Claims ...................................................................62 a. The NFL Assumed a Duty of Care To Guard Player Health and Safety.......................................................................................62 b. Medical Studies Show That the NFL Knew or Should Have Known of the Link Between MTBI and Brain Damage, Particularly the Onset of CTE ........................................................63 c. The NFL Actively Worked To Conceal the Correlation Between MTBI and Brain Damage................................................64 2. Discovery Would Have Allowed Class Counsel To Overcome – or at Least Understand – the Supposed “Stiff and Complex Challenges” to a Successful Suit ...............................................................65 E. The Best Possible Recovery and the Risks of Litigation Weigh Against Approval of the Settlement ...................................................................................70 1. The Proffered Value of the Settlement Is Illusory Because the Settlement Leaves Many Class Members Without Compensation for Their MTBI-Related Diseases ..................................................................70 2. The Proffered Value of the Settlement Is Illusory Because It Sets an Unreasonably High Bar To Qualify for Dementia ....................................72 3. The Proffered Value of the Settlement Is Illusory Because the Baseline Assessment Program Is Underinclusive .....................................73 4. The Proffered Value of the Settlement Is Illusory Because the Settlement Requires Class Members To Navigate a Complex Procedural Maze To Secure Recovery ......................................................74 a. Class Members Are Required To “Opt In” and Meet Arbitrary Examination Deadlines .................................................75 iii Case 2:12-md-02323-AB Document 6201 Filed 10/06/14 Page 5 of 125 b. Class Members Are Required To Prepare and File an Unreasonably Complex and Ambiguous “Claim Package” ..........76 c. Class Members Are Subject to Additional Arbitrary Procedures That Will Limit Compensation ................................778 5. Other Factors Demonstrate That the Value of the Settlement Is Unreasonable in Light of the Best Possible Recovery ..............................79 a. The Attorneys’ Fee Provision ...................................................... 80 b. The Role of the Representative Plaintiffs .................................... 81 c. The Settlement Negotiation Process ............................................ 82 F. The Likelihood of Maintaining Class Status Weighs Against Approval of the Settlement.........................................................................................................82 G. The Potential Complexity, Expense, and Likely Duration of the Litigation Weigh Against Approval of the Settlement .........................................84 IV. Objectors Should Be Permitted To Object and Appear at the Fairness Hearing Even if They Later Opt Out ............................................................................................. 85 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................ 88