Letter to former NFL Players regarding Concussion Settlement

Jul. 26, 2016

Chris Seeger, our co-lead class counsel in the NFL Concussion litigation, recently sent a letter to all former players updating us on the status of the Settlement and urging all retired NFL Football Players who might be suffering from one of the degenerative conditions for which a monetary award is available to seek immediate consultation with a qualified medical professional. Here is a link to the letter: NFL Concussion Settlement Update

I have written about the need for former players to get neurological examinations before it's too late here and also in an article entitled: I had my head examined and you should too.

Chris Seeger also warned us to be cautious of predatory loan lenders and lawyers who were not involved in the Settlement and are now promising to represent you on what appear to be favorable terms. I wrote about the "predatory" lenders back on September 17, 2015 in an article entitled: Former Players solicited for “pre-payments” on NFL Concussion Settlement Awards

So here's where we are with the Settlement:

There are nine former players that filed an appeal with the Third Circuit Court to get the Settlement overturned. The appeal was denied by a panel of three judges and then again by the entire court on June 1, 2016. Those former players are the only ones that can stand in the way of the final approval of the Settlement. They must now decide whether they want to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, or let the Settlement take effect. Any appeal must be filed before the dealine of August 31, 2016. If they decide to appeal, most lawyers agree that it would be highly unlikely for the case to be heard because out of 7,000 cases that are filed with the Supreme Court, they only hear an average of 100 to 150 cases a year.

Arthur Miller, a professor at NYU School of Law and dean of the NYU Sports Institute wrote an opinion piece that was published in the Wall Street Journal entitled Blocking the NFL Concussion Settlement: Meritless appeals could prevent thousands of former players from receiving benefits. In the article he said "What’s really behind these delays is legal fees. There is a cottage industry of “enterprising” lawyers who file meritless appeals to class-action settlements to extract payoffs from class counsel. These lawyers stand in the way of injured parties’ receiving timely compensation from fair settlements that are overwhelmingly supported by the class"

Former NFL players have been delayed, denied and some have even died waiting for this settlement to be finalized. It's time for the nine players to stop blocking the benefits of the Settlement and let the process begin. Let it be!

20,000 former NFL players await their decision.