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5 Concussion Litig. Rep. [1] (2016-2017)

handle is hein.hackneytwo/cclrpt0005 and id is 1 raw text is: July 2016, Vol. 5, No. 1 Timely reporting on developments and legal strategies at the intersection of sports and concussions- articles that benefit practicing attorneys who may be pursuing a claim or defending a client. Contents The Hypocrisy of AIG's Decision to Stop Insuring NFL Players against Head Trauma while Sponsoring Concussion Causing Sports While Sympathetic to Concussed Athlete, Judge Sides with District and Coach Plaintiff Fails to Show USA Water Polo Was Negligent in Concussion Case Forget Football. More Than a Third of Water Polo Players Report Concussions College Athletes Sue over Concussions, Part Deux Court: Youth Football Organization's Claim Against Riddell Can Continue School District, Coach Counter Plaintiff's Negligence Argument in Concussion Case The Hypocrisy of AIG's Decision to Stop Insuring NFL Players against Head Trauma while Sponsoring Concussion Causing Sports By Richard C. Giller, Esq. Over the past several months a number of legal and business decisions have converged at the intersection of sports and insurance. On June 12, the New York Post reported that insurance giant American International Group, Inc. (AIG) had stopped insuring NFL players against head injuries as the dangers of concussions became apparent even though it continues to play up its ties to the game. The Post article came just six weeks after the April 29 court order to lift the stay on discovery that had been in place in the insurance coverage litigation between the NFL and its insurers, like AIG, issued by New York State Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey K. Oing. In that case, which has been pending for over 4 years, AIG and other insurers contend that they do not owe any duty to either defend or indemnify the NFL against claims asserted against the League by retired players claiming the NFL knew about and covered up the dangers of concussions in football. Justice Oing ruled that the NFL must make available to insurance companies its executives and league doctors for depositions as well as producing relevant documents concerning what the NFL knew about concussion risks and for how long those risks were known. Justice Oing is quoted as having said: I can't stop this anymore. The NFL had previously argued against lifting the discovery stay, claiming that allowing depositions and written discovery to go forward might jeopardize the approximately $900 million settlement between the NFL and thousands of retired players. The timing of Judge Oing's ruling may not be coincidental because earlier in April, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit had upheld a lower court ruling that the settlement was fair despite being far from perfect and, in so doing, may have neutered the NFL's prejudice argument. Finally, in March 2016, the Pennsylvania-based youth football organization Pop Warner, settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed in Wisconsin by the mother of a man who committed suicide, allegedly as a result of numerous head injuries he suffered playing in a Pop Warner football league as a child. According to the New York Post, the Pop Warner case was settled for less than the $2 million limits of a liability insurance policy issued to the youth football organization by Lexington Insurance Company, an AIG company. The newspaper also reported that AIG stopped insuring Pop Warner a few years ago as the NFL's concussion crisis trickled down to the high school level and even younger. The youth football organization now reportedly maintains liability insurance coverage through K&K Insurance Group with limits of $1 million per player and individual chapters have the

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