NHL Hit with Another Concussion Injury Class Action Lawsuit

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A second class action lawsuit was filed against the National Hockey League (NHL) by a group of former players who allege the league failed to implement policies and protocols that would have protected players from the dangers of head trauma sustained during practice or games.

Former NHL players Dan LaCouture, Dan Keczmer, Jack Carlson, Richard Brennan, Brad Maxwell, Michael Peluso, Tom Younghans, Allan Rourke and Scott Bailey filed the class action lawsuit on behalf of themselves and all former NHL players who were harmed by the league’s alleged failure to warn and protect them from the serious physical risks associated with professional hockey.

“Through the sophisticated use of the extreme violence as a commodity, from which the NHL has generated billions of dollars, the NHL has subjected and continues to subject its players to the imminent risk of head trauma, and as a result, devastating and long-term negative health consequences,” the class action lawsuit says. “The NHL has failed and continues to fail to warn its players of these risks and consequences of head trauma, concealing material scientific and anecdotal information from its players. The NHL has failed to institute policies and protocols that could have and will protect its players from suffering or exacerbating head trauma sustained during practice or in games.”

According to the class action lawsuit, the NHL’s revenues reached $3.3 billion in 2012. The plaintiffs allege that the league has been “profiteering from extreme violence” and fails to take adequate precautions to protect its players. The NHL concussion lawsuit accuses the league of fostering violent behavior, creating an “eventual cultural association between violence and hockey, which association, in turn, has become the NHL’s principle revenue generator.”

The class action lawsuit cites numerous examples, dating back to the league’s inception in 1917, of violent incidents that took place during hockey practices and games. The complaint also points to documentaries and articles that report on the extreme violence that takes place in the NHL. The plaintiffs argue that the league fosters the culture of violence associated with the sport and fails to meaningfully punish players who commit assaults during practice and games.

The plaintiffs also argue that the NFL has been put on notice that repeated concussions can lead to long-term brain injury, causing conditions such as memory loss, dementia and depression. The class action lawsuit cites numerous scientific and medical studies that repeated head injuries are associated with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a progressive degenerative disease of the brain that is found in athletes and other individuals with a history of repeated brain trauma.

Despite being aware of the dangers of repeated head injuries, the plaintiffs allege that the NHL continues to profit from the violent culture of hockey and has failed to implement effective policy changes to protect its players.

The NFL concussion class action lawsuit seeks damages, including punitive damages, and equitable relief on behalf of a class of all former and current NHL players. The plaintiffs also want the court to order the NHL to implement a medical monitoring program to care for all former and current NHL players to help them manage the “lifelong health problems they have suffered and will suffer as a result of the NHL’s misconduct.”

The NFL concussion lawsuit is the second class action lawsuit to accuse the league of failing to protect its players from repeated head injuries.

The plaintiffs are represented by Samuel H. Rudman, Robert M. Rothman, David A. Rosenfeld, Mario Alba Jr., Paul J. Geller, Cullin A. O’Brien, Stuart A. Davidson, Mark J. Dearman, Kathleen B. Douglas and Janine D. Arno of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP; Jordan M. Cohen of The Cohen Law Firm; and David I. Levine.

The NFL Concussion Injury Class Action Lawsuit is LaCouture, et al. v. National Hockey League, Case No. 1:14-cv-02531, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.