The NFL has become the most popular sport in this country in large part due to the brutality of the game. As players get bigger and faster, the hits get more violent as well.
While the league capitalizes on the big hits, a group of retired football players in a string of NFL concussion lawsuits claim that the NFL intentionally misled them on the dangers of the game and as a result they now suffer life-long head and brain injuries, reports the Associated Press.
The first lawsuit filed by seven former players was brought in Philadelphia last summer. A similar lawsuit, also filed in Philadelphia, was brought on behalf of another 100 ex-players. Other lawsuits are pending or expected in California, Florida, New York, and elsewhere, reports the AP.
Instead of hearing multiple similar claims in courthouses across the country, the NFL is hoping to consolidate in Philadelphia all the lawsuits into one case.
Regardless of where the case is heard, it is no sure thing that injured former players suffering from traumatic brain injuries will prevail in their case. To win a personal injury claim against the NFL, the plaintiffs will have to show that playing in the NFL caused the injuries in the first place.
But as more and more studies are done, it is being revealed that football players often suffer traumatic brain injuries as early as high school. So it may be an uphill battle for the retired players to show the NFL caused their injuries, as opposed to sustaining their injuries in high school or college.
The NFL concussion lawsuits may be consolidated in a Philadelphia court. Wherever the case is heard, the plaintiffs have the difficult task of having to prove that they were actually injured while playing in the NFL.
Related Resources:
- Find a Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney (FindLaw)
- Defenses to Negligence Claims (FindLaw)
- Rangers Flyers Fan Fight, Who's Responsible? (FindLaw's Philadelphia Personal Injury Law Blog)
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