No. C16-1729-1 IN THE Supreme Court of the United States ____________________ NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE PLAYERS ASSOCIATION, on its own behalf and on behalf of Tom Brady, and TOM BRADY, Petitioners, v. NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE MANAGEMENT COUNCIL and NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE, Respondents. On Writ of Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit BRIEF FOR RESPONDENTS Team No. 31 Counsel for Respondents November 21, 2016 QUESTIONS PRESENTED 1. Did the Second Circuit properly approve of an arbitral decision when the collective bargaining agreement granted expansive “appellate” authority over disciplinary decisions to the arbitrator and the Commissioner based his award in the agreement? 2. Did the Second Circuit properly refuse to uphold the vacatur of an arbitral decision when case law calls for extraordinary deference to an arbitrator’s interpretation and the Commissioner construed critical provisions of the collective bargaining agreement? ii TABLE OF CONTENTS QUESTIONS PRESENTED .......................................................................................... ii TABLE OF AUTHORITIES .......................................................................................... iv OPINIONS AND ORDERS ENTERED BELOW .......................................................... 1 STATEMENT OF JURISDICTION ............................................................................... 1 STATUTORY PROVISIONS .......................................................................................... 1 STANDARD OF REVIEW .............................................................................................. 2 STATEMENT OF THE CASE ........................................................................................ 3 SUMMARY OF THE ARGUMENT ................................................................................ 5 ARGUMENT ................................................................................................................... 6 I. The Arbitral Decision Was Within the CBA’s Grant of “Appellate” Authority. ............................................................................................................... 6 A. The Commissioner Had the Authority to Construct a Complete Factual Record. ................................................................................................... 8 B. The Commissioner Had the Authority to Settle Procedural Questions ......... 10 1. The CBA Does Not Require Extensive Discovery ........................................ 11 2. The Commissioner Did Not Exceed His Authority When Excluding Pash’s Testimony .......................................................................................... 12 3. The Commissioner Had the Power to Admit Inculpatory Evidence ........... 13 C. The Commissioner Had the Authority to Determine That Brady’s Misconduct Amounted to Conduct Detrimental to the NFL. ......................... 14 D. The Commissioner Had the Authority to Affirm a Suspension for Conduct Detrimental to the League ................................................................ 15 II. Vacatur Is Rarely Appropriate for Arbitral Decisions – And This Case Is Not an Exception ............................................................................................. 16 A. Legal Precedence Does Not Recommend Vacatur ........................................... 17 B. The Arbitral Decision Draws Its Essence from the CBA ................................ 18 1. The CBA Manifests the Scope of the Parties' Agreement. .......................... 20 2. The Commissioner Resolved Ambiguities Within the CBA. ....................... 22 3. Inconsistencies Among Prior NFL Arbitral Decisions Are Not Fatal ........ 25 C. The Commissioner’s Alleged Omissions Do Not Warrant Vacatur ................ 27 CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................. 31 iii TABLE OF AUTHORITIES United States Code 28 U.S.C. § 1254(1) (2012) ............................................................................................. 1 29 U.S.C § 185(a) (2012) ................................................................................................ 1 9 U.S.C. § 1 (2012) ........................................................................................................ 12 9 U.S.C. § 10(a)(3) (2012) ............................................................................................. 12 United States Supreme Court Cases E. Associated Coal Corp. v. Mine Workers Am., Dist. 17, 531 U.S. 57 (2000) .......................................................................................... 8 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. v. Livingston, 376 U.S. 543 (1964) ................................................................................ 10, 11 Oxford Health Plans LLC v. Sutter, 133 S. Ct. 2064 (2013) ........................................................................ 8, 17, 31 Stolt-Nielsen S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int'l Corp., 559 U.S. 662 (2010) ................................................................................ 5, 7, 8 United Paperworkers Intern. Union, AFL-CIO v. Misco, Inc., 484 U.S. 29 (1987) ................................................................................. passim United Steelworkers of Am. v. Enter. Wheel & Car Corp., 363 U.S. 593 (1960) ............................................................................... passim United Steelworkers of Am. v. Warrior & Gulf Nav. Co., 363 U.S. 574 (1960) ........................................................................ 2, 7, 10, 19 United States Circuit Court Cases Boise Cascade Corp. v. Paper Allied-Indus., Chem. & Energy Workers (PACE), Local 7-0159, 309 F.3d 1075 (8th Cir. 2002) ............................................................... passim Bureau of Engraving, Inc. v. Graphic Commc’ns Int’l Union, 164 F.3d 427 (8th Cir. 1999) ........................................................................ 19 iv Chicago Typographical Union No. 16 v. Chicago Sun-Times, Inc., 935 F.2d 1501 (7th Cir. 1991) ...................................................................... 17 Clinchfield Coal Co. v. Dist. 28, United Mine Workers, 720 F.2d 1365 (4th Cir. 1983) ............................................................... passim Coppinger v. Metro-N. Commuter R.R., 861 F.2d 33 (2d Cir. 1988) ........................................................................... 12 Gas Aggregation Servs., Inc. v. Howard Avista Energy, LLC, 319 F.3d 1060 (8th Cir. 2003) ...................................................................... 23 Johnson Controls, Inc. , Sys. & Servs. Div. v. United Ass’n of Journeymen, 39 F.3d 821 (7th Cir. 1994) .................................................................... 18, 19 LJL 33rd St. Assocs., LLC v. Pitcairn Props. Inc., 725 F.3d 184 (2d Cir. 2013) ......................................................................... 14 Local 1199, Drug, Hosp. & Health Care Emp. Union, RWDSU, AFL-CIO v. Brooks Drug Co., 956 F.2d 22 (2d Cir. 1992) ................................................................... 2, 7, 17 Local Union No. 135 of United Rubber, Cork, Linoleum & Plastic Workers of Am. v. Dunlop Tire & Rubber Corp. of Buffalo, N.Y., 391 F.2d 897 (2d Cir. 1968) ......................................................................... 25 Merit Ins. Co. v. Leatherby Ins. Co., 714 F.2d 673 (7th Cir. 1983) ........................................................................ 15 Nat’l Football League Players Ass’n v. Nat’l Football League (Peterson), 831 F.3d 985 (8th Cir. 2016) ................................................................. passim Nat'l Football League Mgmt. Council v. Nat'l Football League Players Ass'n (Brady), 820 F.3d 527 (2d Cir. 2016) .................................................................. passim SBC Advanced Sols., Inc. v. Commc’ns Workers of Am., Dist. 6, 794 F.3d 1020 (8th Cir. 2015) ...................................................................... 25 Tempo Shain Corp. v. Bertek, Inc., 120 F.3d 16 (2d Cir. 1997) ........................................................................... 12 v Wackenhut Corp. v. Amalgamated Local 515, 126 F.3d 29 (2d Cir. 1997) ........................................................................... 25 Williams v. Nat’l Football League, 582 F.3d 863 (8th Cir. 2009) ........................................................................ 15 United States District Court Cases Nat’l Football League Council v. Nat'l Football League Players Ass'n, 125 F. Supp. 3d 449 (S.D.N.Y. 2015) ............................................................. 1 Sinai Hosp. of Baltimore, Inc. v. 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers E., 65 F. Supp. 3d 440 (D. Md. 2014) ................................................................ 24 State Supreme Court Cases Spiska Eng’g, Inc. v. SPM Thermo-Shield, Inc., 730 N.W.2d 638 (S.D. 2007) ......................................................................... 24 Secondary Sources Bill Barnwell, NFL midseason awards: Can Tom Brady really be the MVP already? (Nov.7, 2016, 7:30 AM), http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/page/Barnwellx161107 ........................... 16 NFL Owners Approve Rules Changes For 2016 (March 22, 2016), http://operations.nfl.com/updates/football-ops/ nfl-owners-approve-rules-changes-for-2016/ ................................................ 6 Roger Goodell, Final Decision on Article 46 Appeal of Tom Brady, 14-16 (July 28, 2015), https://nfllabor.files.wordpress.com/