NBA Players File Class Action Lawsuits Over Lockout

By Sarah Mirando | November 18, 2011

Category: Legal News

By Matt O’Donnell

In light of the inflexible settlement negotiations surrounding the NBA lockout, it comes as no surprise that NBA players have filed two federal class action lawsuits against the league, who they say is violating antitrust laws by not allowing them to work.

The players, including lead Plaintiffs Carmelo Anthony and Caron Butler, say David Stern’s ultimatums left them no other choice. They are alleging the league’s 30 clubs violated antitrust laws by conspiring to enforce an “illegal group boycott and price-fixing arrangement’ to coerce players into agreeing to a “massive reduction” in compensation.

New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony and four other NBA players filed their NBA lockout class action lawsuit in California federal court on behalf of all players under contract with the NBA, and names the 30 NBA member teams as defendants. An identical class action antitrust lawsuit was filed against the NBA by free agent Caron Butler at a federal court in Minnesota.

The NBA players dissolved their union this week after repeatedly failing to reach negotiations over a new labor agreement. The move allows the players to sue the league for antitrust violations — the exact same move NFL players made when negotiations with the National Football League over their contracts broke down earlier this year.

“The collective bargaining process and relationship have completely broken down, and the NBA players have exercised their labor right not to be in a union,” says Butler’s NBA lockout class action lawsuit. “The consequence is that any labor exemption to the antitrust laws no longer applies.”

The players are seeking treble damages — triple the amount of the more than $2 billion they would have made under a full 2011-2012 season — for what they say is irreparable harm by preventing them from playing in their “very short” NBA careers.

The NBA Lockout Class Action Lawsuit cases are:

Anthony v. NBA, Case No. 11-cv-5525, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, Oakland; and Butler v. NBA, Case No. 11-cv-03352, U.S. District Court, Minnesota.