NFL league and injuries: Why retirees claim the league’s disability plan is a scam…

Christopher Seeger, co-lead players’ lawyer, addresses the media after a hearing on the proposed NFL concussion settlement outside the United States Courthouse in Philadelphia on November 19, 2014. In a possible class-action complaint filed in Baltimore on Thursday, February 9, 2023, ten retired NFL players accuse the league of lying, acting in bad faith, and violating federal law by refusing disability compensation. On Thursday, March 21, 2024, a federal judge in Maryland declined to dismiss a complaint alleging that the NFL flagrantly violated its disability plan by dismissing eligible claims.
A federal judge in Maryland has determined that a lawsuit against the NFL’s disability plan, which allegedly denied valid injury claims, can go to trial on most counts.

A lawsuit filed last year accuses program officials of violating federal law and acting in bad faith. U.S. District Judge Julie R. Rubin ruled that the claim can proceed against the board, but not against Commissioner Roger Goodell or the trustees individually, because they were not accused of wrongdoing.

Lawyers for the ten retired players who signed on to the possible class action termed Wednesday’s verdict “a huge win” for those who have faced “systemic injustice.”

“We look forward to continuing to shine a light on the NFL’s betrayal, holding the plan fully accountable, and correcting this broken system so it is fair to players going forward,” lawyers Chris Seeger and Sam Katz said in a statement on Thursday.