Ed O'Bannon Lawsuit UPDATE: Judge Denies Last of NCAA's Motions, Trial Set for June 9
ByEd O'Bannon's antitrust lawsuit is set to go to trial as scheduled June 9 after U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken denied the NCAA's remaining motions Friday.
According to USA Today, Wilken did separate O'Bannon's case from former Arizona State and Nebraska quarterback Sam Keller's, which focused on college sports-themed video games. That trial was given a March 2015 date.
O'Bannon is suing the NCAA for making billions of dollars in profits and not properly compensating Division I football and basketball student-athletes for it. He originally named EA Sports and Collegiate Licensing Company in his suit, but the two settled out of an undisclosed total, leaving the NCAA on its own.
Wilken previously ordered O'Bannon and his lawyers to meet with the NCAA's in mediated settlement discussions. Those were apparently unsuccessful as the case is finally set to go to trial after it has been delayed nearly five years.
"I think this ruling has cleared the deck and there will be no more dramatic efforts at diversion," Michael Hausfeld, the lead attorney for the O'Bannon plaintiffs, told USA Today. "I'm pleased that we're going forward. We've been attempting to be in a position to where we could expose the fiction of the system. Hopefully we can change the enterprise to a free market where athletes have a balanced voice and a fair relationship."
According to ESPN, the NCAA stated it is ready for the trial after the last of its motions have been considered but ultimately denied. The plaintiffs filed last week to pursue individual damages and therefore to eliminate the jury and allow Wilken to rule on the case herself.
Joining O'Bannon are 20 former college athletes, including two NBA Hall of Famers, Bill Russell and Oscar Robertson. They are seeking an injunction that would allow college athletes to market their services to different schools, seeking compensation in either a paycheck or extra benefits. The NCAA wants to stick to its strict model of amateurism that does not allow any sort of extra benefits beyond what the student-athlete's scholarship provides.
"Although the plaintiffs' eleventh-hour change in strategy has denied a jury the opportunity to decide the important issues in the O'Bannon litigation, we are prepared for trial and look forward to presenting our case to the judge," Donald Remy, the NCAA's chief legal officer, said in a statement. "At the same time, we will continue to prepare for a jury trial in the Keller case that is scheduled for March."
