Three D1 Refs Suing NCAA & Alliance Affiliated Leagues

[LRZ]

Originally Posted by Player989random

Do you believe they have a valid case?

A lot depends on the competing "facts" offered by the plaintiffs and defendants. In the pleadings, we see what the plaintiffs allege; the defendants will, of course, offer a contrasting version of the facts, so the central question is whether the reduced schedules resulted from declining abilities or from age discrimination? This is for the jury to determine.

And that issue would only come into play after a threshold determination of the employer/employee/independent contractor question--that is, do the two statutes even apply to the cases at bar? This is a legal issue, for the trial judge to determine.

But the lawsuit is certainly not frivolous, and has merit.

One further point: the law is always trying to catch up with societal and technological changes. The status of officials in amateur sports presents just such a situation, where the law doesn't really fit; in my view, we are a hybrid, somewhere between employee and independent contractor.