Judge Refuses Transfer of US Women’s Soccer Pay Gap Class Action

UPDATE 4: On Dec. 1, 2020, the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team settled its class action lawsuit over working conditions with the U.S. Soccer Federation, but the team’s fight for equal pay continues.

UPDATE 3: On Feb. 20, 2020, a group of women soccer players who say they are paid much less than men by the U.S. Soccer Federation claim that they are owed nearly $67 million in damages.

UPDATE 2: On Nov. 8, 2019, U.S. Women’s Soccer players have received Class certification in a lawsuit claiming that the World Cup champions are subjected to discriminatory practices by the U.S. Soccer Federation, because they are paid less than their male counterparts.

UPDATE: On Sept. 11, 2019, the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team moved for Class certification in a lawsuit arguing that the federation’s pay rules are a “textbook example” of discrimination.

As the U.S. women’s soccer team wins another World Cup, a legal battle continues over alleged gender pay discrimination between the men’s and women’s teams — the women’s national team is suing their employers, the U.S. Soccer Federation, for paying them significantly less than their male counterparts.

The latest development comes as a California federal judge refuses to allow the U.S. Soccer Federation to transfer the pay discrimination class action lawsuit to the Northern District of California.

U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner stated that the Northern District would be an improper venue for the claims and did not transfer the gender pay gap class action lawsuit. He said that “the court sees no justification for inconveniencing both parties by transferring the matter to an undesirable venue.”

This decision was based in part on an argument made by the U.S. Soccer Federation itself who had opposed the combination of a lawsuit filed by player Hope Solo and the pay gap class action lawsuit filed by the women’s team as a whole.

When the combined soccer pay gap class action lawsuits were possibly going to be moved to the Northern District of California, the federation argued that the pay gap class action lawsuits have “no logical ties to the parties” in the case of Solo’s claims.

A multidistrict litigation panel determined to keep Solo’s lawsuit separate from the team-wide one.

Now, as the U.S. Soccer Federation attempts to have the team-wide class action lawsuit moved to the Northern District, Judge Klausner pointed to the federation’s own argument to support his denial of this request.

Judge Klausner noted that the federation also argued that the two suits were “substantially similar if not ‘precisely the same,’” and the judge used this point to make his determination that the team’s gender pay gap claims should remain in the Central District of California, where they were initially filed in March.

Judge Klausner elaborated that the women’s national team plays and trains in the Central District of California.

Judge Klausner also noted that the “first-to-file” rule applies in this instance, because it permits a district court to transfer, stay, or dismiss an action “when a complaint involving the same parties and issues has already been filed in another district,” supporting his argument that the team-wide women’s soccer class action lawsuit should remain in its current district.

In the women’s national soccer team class action lawsuit, the players argue that the U.S. Soccer Federation is an employer of both the men’s and women’s teams, and unjustly pays women considerably less than they pay men, despite the women having a much better playing record than the men.

The team is represented by Jeffrey L. Kessler, David G. Feher, Cardelle B. Spangler, Diana Hughes, and Jeanifer E. Parsigian of Winston & Strawn LLP.

The U.S. Women’s Soccer Gender Pay Gap Class Action Lawsuit is Morgan, et al. v. U.S. Soccer Federation Inc., Case No. 2:19-cv-01717, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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