Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST—NDCal: Attempt to Strike Former College Student-Athletes’ Motion for Class Certification Against NCAA Premature, (Jan 31, 2013)
Law Firms Mentioned:Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP | Keker & Van Nest LLP | King & Spalding LLP | Meckler Bulger Tilson Marick & Pearson LLP
Organizations Mentioned:Collegiate Licensing Company. | Electronic Arts | Electronic Arts, Inc. | Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, LLP | Keker & Van Nest, LLP | King & Spalding, LLP | NCAA | National Collegiate Athletic Association
By E. Darius Sturmer, J.D.
In an antitrust lawsuit brought by former collegiate student-athletes against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), its licensing affiliate Collegiate Licensing Company, and video game maker Electronics Arts, Inc., the federal district court in Oakland, California, refused to strike the plaintiffs’ motion for class certification on the basis that the plaintiffs were “precluded from prosecuting the claims for which they seek certification” (In re NCAA Student-Athlete Name & Likeness Antitrust Litigation, January 29, 2013, Wilken, C.)
The case centers on the student-athletes’ allegations that the defendants violated federal antitrust law by conspiring to deny them royalties for use of their names and likenesses in NCAA-licensed products and by preventing them from pursuing other licensing opportunities.
Contentions of claim preclusion were more properly considered as arguments supporting denial of a motion for class certification on the merits, the court noted. Therefore, the court decided to construe the motion to strike as a brief in opposition to the plaintiffs’ motion for certification, and granted the defendants leave to file an additional brief in opposition to class certification.
Finally, the court set out a case management schedule that would culminate in trial of the antitrust claims in June 2014.
The case is No. C 09-1967 CW.
Attorneys: Shana E. Scarlett (Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP) for the plaintiffs. Robert James Slaughter (Keker & Van Nest LLP) for Electronic Arts, Inc. Juan Carlos Araneda (Meckler Bulger Tilson Marick & Pearson LLP) for National Collegiate Athletic Association. Amber Melia Trincado (King & Spalding LLP) for Collegiate Licensing Company.
Companies: National Collegiate Athletic Association; Electronic Arts, Inc.; Collegiate Licensing Company.
Cases: Antitrust CaliforniaNews