Pop Warner Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over Concussion Risk

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Pop Warner Little Scholars Inc. has been hit with a class action lawsuit accusing it of failing to take steps to protect young football players from concussions.

Pop Warner is a nonprofit organization that operates a youth tackle football, cheer and dance program.

According to the concussion class action lawsuit, more than 250,000 children participate in the Pop Warner tackle football program each year.

The Pop Warner class action lawsuit, which also names as defendants National Operating Committee on Standards Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE) and USA Football, says the defendants misrepresented material facts about the safety of the Pop Warner tackle football program and the safety equipment used by the youth players in the program.

Plaintiffs Kimberly Archie and Jo Cornell filed the Pop Warner class action lawsuit last week in California federal court.

They claim that NOCSAE represents that all helmets used by Pop Warner participants are governed by NOCSAE equipment safety standards, and that the helmets all include a sticker confirming that the helmet “meets NOCSAE standards.”

However, the Pop Warner class action lawsuit states, NOCSAE has conceded there are no helmet safety standards that are specific to youth football helmets.

“As a result, NOCSAE’s representation that the Pop Warner equipment, including but not limited to hard-shell helmets, meets NOCSAE standards is misleading, creating a false sense of security for Pop Warner participants and the parents and/or guardians who enroll them,” the Pop Warner concussion class action lawsuit says.

Archie and Cornell allege that Pop Warner and USA Football also misrepresent the safety of Pop Warner football by making misleading claims that Pop Warner’s “Heads-Up Football” training program results in 87 percent lower injury rates than other programs.

According to the Pop Warner class action lawsuit, the Heads-Up training program does not actually reduce the risk of injury by the amount suggested by USA Football and Pop Warner.

Archie and Cornell both had children who participated in Pop Warner’s youth football program starting in 1997, according to the concussion class action lawsuit.

The plaintiffs say that their children began having behavioral issues and other issues that ultimately contributed to their deaths. It was subsequently discovered that both of their children suffered from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, a condition that has been famously linked to repeated brain trauma.

By filing the Pop Warner concussion class action lawsuit, Archie and Cornell seek to represent all participants (including those who are deceased) of the Pop Warner youth tackle football program since 1997 who have suffered from brain injuries, damage or disease.

They also seek to represent anyone who enrolled their minor children in the Pop Warner tackle football program since 1997.

The Pop Warner class action lawsuit asserts claims for negligence, fraud, fraudulent concealment, negligent misrepresentation and deceptive business practices. The plaintiffs are asking for injunctive relief, costs, restitution, damages, disgorgement, pre- and post-judgment interest, attorneys’ fees and other relief deemed appropriate by the court.

They are also asking the judge to order NOCSAE to put warnings on all helmets about the risk of CTE and other diseases, and an order requiring them to provide helmet safety and design standards for youth football players.

The plaintiffs are represented by Thomas V. Girardi and Robert W. Finnerty of Girardi Keese.

The Pop Warner Concussion Class Action Lawsuit is Kimberly Archie, et al. v. Pop Warner Little Scholars Inc., et al., Case No. 2:16-cv-06603, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

UPDATE: On Oct. 20, 2017, following a federal judge’s decision, Pop Warner will continue to face claims over head injuries suffered in its youth tackle football program.

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