Ninth Circuit Grants NFL Complete Victory in Negligence Case

On April 18, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted a complete victory to our client, the National Football League (NFL), and affirmed the district court’s summary judgment ruling in its favor in Dent v. National Football League. Eight retired players brought the action on behalf of a putative class of former athletes who played in the NFL between 1969-2008. After eight years of litigation, their case was narrowed to a negligence claim based on allegations that the plaintiffs suffered injuries caused by medications provided to them as part of an improper return-to-play policy conducted by the league. On appeal, the plaintiffs challenged the district court’s orders denying class certification, granting summary judgment to the NFL and denying the plaintiffs’ motion for relief from judgment. The Ninth Circuit affirmed all three orders in our client’s favor.