South Florida Attorney Says Brian Flores' Lawsuit Will 'Ring Loud & Clear Across The Entire Country'
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Brian Flores' racial discrimination lawsuit has sent shockwaves throughout the NFL, which he claims "is managed much like a plantation."
South Florida attorney David Weinstein joined CBS4 News at 7 p.m. to discuss the ramifications of the lawsuit on and off the field.
ELIOTT RODRIGUEZ: David, how can he file a class action lawsuit by himself? Doesn't he have to be a member of a class? Doesn't he need other Black coaches to join in this legal action?
WEINSTEIN: Well, it that's exactly what he's doing right now. He has placed himself at the forefront of this. He's established that he is part of this class of coaches or former coaches. And he's naming himself as a named defender. We see this all the time in class action lawsuits. He's hoping that others will come out of the woodwork. We've seen that happen in the lawsuits that were filed by players against the NFL for disparaging treatment that they were given for their health conditions and for a variety of other factors. So he is creating this class and it's one that exists and he hopes others will come join him.
LAUREN PASTRANA: Multiple defendants listed on this lawsuit, David, but specifically the Miami Dolphins. So why was this class action lawsuit filed in New York federal court?
WEINSTEIN: Well, that's where the NFL is based, and that's the primary defendant here. If you look at the style of the lawsuit, it's against the NFL, and then they single out the Miami Dolphins, the New York Giants and the Denver Broncos. But they're essentially suing all 32 teams, they're just naming three teams along with the NFL. And Lauren, getting back to your question, it's being filed in New York because that's where the NFL does business.
Click Here To Read The Full Class Action Lawsuit
RODRIGUEZ: And David, we were talking to Jim Berry about the numbers that with 32 teams and 70% of the players being African Americans, you have no Black ownership, only one Black head coach four Black offensive coordinators. Numbers don't lie. But what else is needed in the courtroom to prove a pattern of systemic racism?
WEINSTEIN: He's made some very strong allegations in his lawsuit. And he's pointed to specific instances of conduct that have occurred. And what's going to be required is for him to present evidence and testimony and records and receipts that show his version of the facts is an accurate one. We've already seen denials by the NFL, by the Denver Broncos, by the New York Giants and the Miami Dolphins. That's part of what litigation is all about. There are going to be depositions that are taken in this lawsuit. There are going to be some really hard questions that are going to be asked under oath of owners and managers and other people involved in this decision making process. And this also has implications for their antitrust exemption. There are many in Washington who we're going to be looking at this. So this is not just a lawsuit that's going to touch on what happens in the football field here in South Florida, but this is going to ring loud and clear across the entire country.
PASTRANA: Some pretty serious allegations against Dolphins owner Stephen Ross that he was willing to pay $100,000 for each game loss. That he wanted to perhaps tamper with a prominent quarterback's contract and maybe lower him down here to South Florida. Are these violations just of NFL policies or potential violations of law that could be tried in court?
WEINSTEIN: They are at their core violations of NFL policy, specifically the tampering rules with players who are under contract. And then with allegations about inducing a coach to perhaps tank a game, that goes right towards the NFL shield. There is an interesting side issue that might come up. If he's encouraging his coach to lose a game, we now have the advent of gambling throughout the country, both on apps, in person, etc. Is he potentially putting himself in a situation where he's influencing the outcome of some of these games? Is there potentially some wire fraud that may be taking place here? That's an interesting question that's going to need to be explored. It certainly has changed with the change of the landscape of gambling. That's one place where there could be some real implications here outside of monetary losses.