The Nevada Supreme Court on Wednesday is hearing oral arguments on the NFL’s appeal of Jon Gruden’s lawsuit against the league.
The NFL is asking the court to reverse a lower court’s decision to allow Gruden’s lawsuit for negligence and intentional interference with contractual relations to proceed in the courts. The NFL instead wants Gruden’s complaint to be dealt with in arbitration, overseen by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who is named in the lawsuit.
Gruden filed the suit in November 2021. Wednesday’s hearing was postponed from November, when attorneys, citing a scheduling conflict, asked for the postponement.
Gruden is accusing the NFL of leaking emails he wrote to then-Washington Commanders president Bruce Allen from 2011-18 that were rife with racist and homophobic remarks and highly critical of Goodell. The leaked emails stoked public outrage against Gruden, eventually leading to his resignation as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders — an outcome he said the league manipulated.
Gruden in the suit accused the league of a “malicious and orchestrated campaign” to force his resignation.
The emails surfaced as part of the NFL’s investigation into workplace culture in Washington under its previous owner Daniel Snyder. The leaked emails, found amid 650,000 documents, became the only part of the league’s probe that went public, and Gruden is suing for damages and to find out the source of the leaks.
Gruden resigned with more than six seasons remaining on a 10-year, $100 million contract he signed with the Raiders.
Clark County (Nev.) District Court Judge Nancy Allf denied the NFL’s motion to compel arbitration in May 2022, a ruling the league is appealing to the high court on Wednesday.
–Field Level Media