The NFL filed a motion earlier this week to have Brian Flores’ class-action lawsuit against the league and several of its teams moved into arbitration.
In the filing, which was made in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the league argued that Flores and the two other coaches who have joined the lawsuit — Steve Wilks and Ray Horton — signed contract that include arbitration clauses.
“The NFL Constitution’s arbitration provisions to which Plaintiffs agreed expressly cover claims involving two or more member clubs and claims between any coach and any member club — precisely the case here,” the filing read, via ESPN.
Flores, who filed his lawsuit in February, alleges racial discrimination in the league’s hiring practices. Among the teams specifically named were the New York Giants, who had Flores as a head coach finalist before hiring Brian Daboll.
The news of Daboll’s hiring reached Flores through an accidental text via New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who was sending messages to the wrong Brian. Giants co-owner John Mara later denied that Belichick had any influence on or knowledge of the team’s decision.
Mara also previously stated that he will not settle with Flores.
“I’m not settling,” Mara said bluntly. “Because the allegations are false and we’re very comfortable with our hiring process. It was a fair process and we ended up making the decision we made based on a lot of factors, none of which had anything to do with race.”
Meanwhile, Flores and his representation have said they would request that arbitration be denied if the Giants or the league pushed for it.
“Arbitration is not transparent,” attorney Douglas H. Wigdor said. “Indeed, arbitration is by its very nature a secretive process that takes place behind closed doors and outside of the public eye. The lack of transparency in arbitration only serves to continue the status quo-which in this case, is one that you have conceded must be fairly evaluated and potentially overhauled. That cannot happen in arbitration. In addition to being secret and confidential, it is a well-accepted fact that arbitration presents a barrier to justice for victims of discrimination and other misconduct.”
A decision on arbitration is not expected to come until late summer at the earliest.