Oakland Raiders Lose in Court

By Hugo Guzman  |   Monday, February 28, 2005  |  Comments( 0 )

Oakland Raiders
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article!
A California appellate court Wednesday wiped out the Raiders' claims to more than $1 billion in damages from the NFL, a major blow to owner Al Davis' dependence on the legal system to redress the wrongs he maintains have been inflicted upon him.

The three-judge panel of the 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles reinstated a 2001 jury verdict that denied Davis' two claims: that the NFL in 1995 wrecked his chances to build a stadium at Hollywood Park, forcing him to return to Oakland, and that he should be compensated for leaving the Los Angeles market. After a seven-week trial and three weeks of deliberations, the Los Angeles jury ruled 9-3 in the NFL's favor, with nine votes being sufficient to reach a verdict in a civil case.

The trial judge, Richard C. Hubbell, in 2002 threw out the verdict in response to claims by the Raiders of juror misconduct. Davis personally interviewed jurors after the trial and obtained sworn affidavits from several claiming that one juror was biased against the Raiders, another used her expertise as an attorney to improperly influence the group and a third had trouble understanding English. The allegedly biased juror - Joseph Abiog - was quoted as saying during deliberations he "hated the Raiders."

The NFL produced affidavits from other jurors refuting the statements - Abiog said his remark was made in jest because he once lost a bet on the team in Las Vegas - and the appellate justices said unanimously that the courts should not step in to resolve what happened in deliberations. "On the basis of the conflicting juror declarations before us, we cannot find that the conduct of" the three jurors "considered either in isolation or combination constituted misconduct warranting a new trial," the ruling said.

The 57-page decision at times appeared contemptuous of the Raiders' legal strategy. The ruling noted that the same juror who allegedly had language problems filed a declaration for the Raiders "in well-written English" and also said the court found "the Raiders' juror declarations less persuasive in view of their remarkable similarity."

In addition to reinstating the verdict, the court rejected the Raiders' claims that the trial judge's jury instructions were improper and tossed out a Raiders appeal on a separate part of the case, one in which the trial judge found the team was obligated to share personal-seat-license and club-seat money from Oakland with the rest of the league. The NFL said it was unknown how much the Raiders might owe the league on that issue.

The court also rejected an appeal of the trial judge's ruling removing NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and former NFL president Neil Austrian as defendants in the case. The Raiders - who in 2002 declared Hubbell's decision to overturn the jury verdict to be a "huge victory" - vowed to take Wednesday's decision to the California Supreme Court. "Obviously, we are very disappointed in the decision," said Larry Feldman, a Los Angeles attorney who handled the appeal for Davis. "We're hopeful the California Supreme Court will see it our way." The Supreme Court is not obligated to review the case.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said, "We are pleased by the court's unanimous decision and hope that it brings this long-running litigation to a close."

The Raiders remain involved in several other major lawsuits. Both the team and its landlords - Oakland and Alameda County - have appealed a Sacramento jury's 2003 verdict in a case regarding whether Davis was defrauded in 1995 by statements that the Oakland Coliseum had "sold out" before he signed final papers to move. The jury awarded the Raiders $34.2 million, far short of the $833 million Davis said he was due.

And Davis is still defending an Alameda County case filed by the heirs of the late Edward J. McGah, whose father was one of the founders of the team and who charge that Davis is denying them access to team financial records. The McGah family, which owns nearly a third of the team, is attempting to dissolve the partnership, which Davis controls.
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article! (0)

About Hugo Guzman

Co-founder of RealFootball365.com. Born in Argentina, of Dominican descent, living in Hoboken, but from Miami through and ...
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report