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Appeals court backs NFL, lockout remains in place

(China Daily)
Updated: 2011-05-18 08:24

Retired Minnesota Vikings defensive end Carl Eller enters a federal courthouse for court-ordered mediation regarding labor and revenue issues between the NFL and the NFL Players Association in Minneapolis on Monday. [Photo/Agencies]

Battle set to continue for some time as panel rules in favor of the league

MINNEAPOLIS - The NFL's lockout remains in place, a federal appeals court ruled on Monday. That means the league likely won't get back to business until at least next month - and maybe much longer than that.

The 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals said the lockout can stay until a full appeal is heard on whether it is legal. That hearing is scheduled for June 3 in St. Louis, before the same panel that issued this 2-1 decision.

The appellate court said it believes the NFL has proven it "likely will suffer some degree of irreparable harm without a stay". The court also cast doubt on the conclusions of US District Judge Susan Richard Nelson, who ruled on April 25 that the lockout should be lifted to save the players from irreversible damage. The 8th Circuit panel put her decision on hold four days later.

"The league has made a strong showing that it is likely to succeed on the merits," the appellate court majority wrote.

The decision came as NFL owners and players finished their latest round of court-ordered mediation behind closed doors, a session that lasted more than eight hours. This was the fifth day of talks in front of US Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan, the first since April 20.

Neither side would elaborate on the discussions, citing the judge's confidentiality order, but said they planned to resume talks on Tuesday morning. Michael Hausfeld, an attorney for the retired players who joined the antitrust lawsuit against the league, said the players were reviewing a new proposal from the owners.

"It probably is not one that would be acceptable as is, but it clearly opens a dialogue," Hausfeld said.

Beyond that, both sides stuck to their message.

The owners want to stay out of court, blaming the players for preferring litigation. The players claim they're only interested in playing and that the owners are preventing them and fans from enjoying the game.

"We have an opportunity to resolve this matter and get the game back on the field, and that really should be our exclusive focus," NFL lead negotiator Jeff Pash said.

DeMaurice Smith, the head of the NFL Players Association, said the players have prepared for a lockout for two years, suggesting they're not ready to relent in light of Monday's unfavorable ruling.

"Right now our guys are out there working out for free, because they dig the game," Smith said.

Commissioner Roger Goodell, speaking to Buffalo Bills season ticket holders on a conference call, said he thinks there's "still time" to strike a new collective bargaining agreement.

"But time is running short. It's time to get back to the table and get those issues resolved," Goodell said.

NFLPA president Kevin Mawae said he was disappointed with the 8th Circuit's decision.

"The ruling in granting the stay of the injunction means that the NFL owners can continue to not let football be played," he said.

The appellate court said it would make its decision quickly, a "circumstance that should minimize harm to the players during the offseason and allow the case to be resolved well before the scheduled beginning of the 2011 season".

Indeed, with training camps just two months away and the first preseason game set for Aug 8, there is restlessness around the league to go with all the uncertainty.

"We'd like to make progress, but it'll be hard to do. We have to wait to see what happens June 3," Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II said earlier on his way into the federal courthouse for Monday's mediation.

The 8th Circuit's decision to keep the lockout in place could be a signal of how the two sides will fare in the full appeal. The majority opinion, from Judges Steven Colloton and Duane Benton, sided with the NFL. Judge Kermit Bye dissented in favor of the players.

"The district court reasoned that this case does not involve or grow out of a labor dispute because the players no longer are represented by a union," the majority wrote. "We have considerable doubt about this interpretation."

The 8th Circuit has been seen as a more conservative, business-friendly venue for the NFL than the federal courts in Minnesota. Colloton and Benton were both appointed by Republican President George W. Bush; Bye was appointed by President Clinton, a Democrat.

Bye dismissed the conclusions of his fellow judges, just as he did on April 29 in dissenting against a temporary stay. He didn't buy the NFL's argument that it would be unable to "unscramble the egg" - a reference to the chaos of handling player transactions with no CBA in place.

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