Bernie Parrish’s Next Play
Dear Retired/Former Players, Active Players, and Fans:
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Recently, over 2,000 of you retired players received checks from the litigation Bernie Parrish brought about for you against the NFL Players Association and Players Inc. In an unusual introduction to his ruling Judge William H. Alsup, the federal judge in the case, expressed his opinion in his order that the attorneys – led by Ron Katz – for the players did not do a good job. In spite of our attorney’s poor performance, the court approved the jury’s finding in our favor for $28.1 million. Subsequently, Katz approved a dubious settlement of $26.25 million to a select group who had signed GLAs over the past four years that the Players Inc. attorneys chose to produce. Others of you signed GLA’s but did not keep photocopies as proof while even more of you were never even given the opportunity to sign a GLA. The fact is the Judge indicated that there should have been a much higher award for the plaintiffs, the 2062 GLA signers produced by the NFLPA attorney’s Richard Berthelsen and Jeffery Kessler. Walt Roberts and Bernie are both disappointed with the award in Bernard Parrish et al v. National Football League Players, Inc. et al – Case No. 07-0943 WHA.
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As Judge Alsup indicated, the award should have been for millions of dollars more and we know there are at least 1000 of you who signed GLA’s, who are in Players Inc. records, who should have been included by the NFLPA attorneys in the lawsuit, under penalty of perjury.
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Thousands of other retired players have been equally abused.
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We now need to finish the work for ALL professional football players collectively, from the guys who are retired to those who are disabled and denied benefits. We need to get compensation from those who have benefited from using our likenesses, our names, images and our playing statistics. And we need to get the disability and pension benefits that so many of us have been denied over the years. As such, we need to look at pursuing all other avenues of litigation once again. It is the only way of getting our fair share. We are entitled to compensation now that we have proved in a federal court that the NFLPA did defraud us and continues to cheat retired players using – according to Judge Alsup – “the illusion of representation.” The NFLPA leaders continue to collude with NFL management to cheat retired players.
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With your help and support we are ready to proceed with further litigation for ALL retired players, not just the 2062 actually chosen by the despots who control the NFLPA, as has occurred under the settlement in the this suit.
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We have established a new nonprofit organization, Pro Football Players Litigation Fund, Inc. to continue the battle to pursue justice and monetary equity for all pro football players.
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If you have received a check from the settlement, we ask each of you – if that settlement check allows you to afford it – to send $100 or more to Pro Football Players’ Litigation Fund, Inc. We’re also asking the other retired players who did not receive anything from this settlement to consider a contribution and to join our team for the coming battles because you will ALL be included in the next rounds of lawsuits.
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As usual, there is even an NFL cloud of controversy over the number of retired players. Before his death, Gene Upshaw gave a written sworn statement in Bernard Parrish et al v. National Football League Players, Inc. et al – Case No. 07-0943 WHA that there are 13,000 retired players while Roger Goodell, in his October 2009 testimony told Congress there are 21,000 former players.
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Contributions from retired players in 2007 helped Bernie bring about the Congressional hearings on retired players issues that began in 2007 and are still ongoing today. Bernie testified in Detroit earlier this month in the latest and most successful hearing. Bernie is also in significant part responsible for a bill that is scheduled to be introduced shortly in the House of Representatives to rescind the NFL’s current partial anti-trust exemption. Those who contributed $5,000 the first time we asked got one hell of a bargain: They got a $28 million legal settlement and two-and-a-half years of Congressional hearings and actions that may lead to the repeal of the NFL antitrust exemptions that are used to abuse players and the public.
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Even critics admit that Bernie’s leadership was instrumental in bringing about the congressional hearings that continue today; those critics have even made the complaint that it is Bernie’s fault because Congress isn’t moving faster!
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We encourage you to view the video of my (Bernie’s) latest testimony to Congress given just two weeks ago on January 4, 2010. Both DeMaurice Smith and George Martin exited the hearing room before Bernie’s testimony began after Bernie had given them advance notice that he intended to confront Smith and Martin about their their false claims of representation of retired players. George Martin and other management puppets do nothing but talk while being obedient courtiers in Roger Goodell’s royal circle of public relations manipulators who are committed to helping him frustrate and abuse retired players (that same old divide-and-conquer strategy).
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Our attorneys and our class representative attempted to give outrageous blanket releases to the defendants (DeMaurice Smith, Richard Berthelsen, the NFLPA/Players Inc.) for immunity from future lawsuits. They would have also given immunity to their partners, Electronic Arts, John Madden, Topps and over 80 other vendors who were – and still are – in collusion with the NFLPA’s Players Inc., defrauding us to the tune of $300+ million! This blatant attempt was thwarted by my e-mail notice and more importantly by Judge Alsup’s amending the settlement document.
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We have recently set up a new non-profit organization that has absolutely no all ties with our former attorneys and class representative. They will not be involved in this new litigation to pursue and protect only the best interests of retired NFL players and their families. You retired players sent a little under $5,000 in contributions of $25 – $1,000 to a nonprofit organization that supported our first win in court. But our struggle is unfinished. We must continue the fight for full compensation for ALL retired players. You can send your checks to the following address (we’ll be accepting credit and debit card donations on their website later in the week):
Click HERE to go to Bernie’s fund blog (under development).
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Pro Football Players Litigation Fund, Inc.
2114 NW. 40th Terrace
Suite A-1
Gainesville, FL 32605
(Many of you will recognize that this is the same address you sent your support to in 2006 and 2007.)
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We also know some of you are not receiving a check from this case and won’t be able to contribute at this time. But we still invite you to send a letter or e-mail and join us – you’re one of the most important reasons we’re doing this.
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Your brothers-in-arms,
Bernie Parrish & Walt Roberts
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P.S. – Clarification: I have previously stated I am not on the GLA list and friends have pointed out that needs some clarification. I, Bernard P. Parrish am included on the GLA list as number 1459 with no years X‘ed indicating no GLA’s signed in any year. That means I will receive nothing from this case’s award. The official list is titled NFLPA NFL Retired Players-Group Licensing Agreements 2002-2006.
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I signed GLA’s through 2005 but the NFLPA’s lawyers have deleted and hidden that information and our own attorney Ron Katz who signed an agreement that included my name represented me individually as well as part of the class never mentioned this obvious NFLPA subterfuge to me or the court. In my opinion, evidence tampering and perjury certainly appear to be involved here and it remains to be seen how many continue to participate in the “Parrish-isn’t-part-of-the-class” scam. If I did not sign any GLA’s, then why is my name on the NFLPA’s GLA list to begin with? This issue has the usual foul odor of an Upshaw/Berthelsen/Kessler machinations. Katz seems to be involved in this too. I provided a sworn statement to Katz that I had signed GLA’s through 2005 which actually runs through April 2006.
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Bob Grant
January 18th, 2010 at 1:13 PM #
Retired Players and Retired Player Family Members,
Our plans are to now expand the base of the Parrish Team so that we can move forward in even greater numbers. Some of you have already advised me of your willingness to help us notify other players of the need for them to get onboard now. But not everyone has a computer and I’m sure that there are others who do not read the Dave Pear blog and aren’t on our e-mail list. As one of our Captains, you may be able to help with our outreach.
Please feel free to contact me directly at nstraders@aol.com as well if you’re willing to help in getting the word out and bringing more men into the Parrish Team.
Sincerely,
Bob Grant
Parrish Team Member
Independent Activist/Advocate
Dave Pear
January 18th, 2010 at 9:31 PM #
Judge William Alsup:
“A jury trial in October 2008 culminated in a $28.1 million verdict in favor of the class for breach of fiduciary duty.”
“The jury also found a breach of contract but awarded zero damages on the claim.”
“There was strong evidence supporting the breach of fiduciary duty claim.”
“Indeed, the jury found that defendants’ had a fiduciary duty to market the group rights of class members, and the evidence showed defendants did not so much as lift a finger to meet that duty. But counsel presented no coherent evidence or expert testimony to the jury regarding what the actual value of the retired players’ group rights would have been had they been actively marketed. This was a highly controverted omission and left the jury at sea to construct its own number.”
1) Question: Why was there no evidence or testimony regarding what the actual value would have been (in dollars) if retired players were marketed?
The dollar amount could have been well over a $100,000,000! And if punitive damages were also awarded then this number would have been even larger.
2) Question: How could it have been that the NFLPA lobbied thousands of retired players for (14) fourteen years to sign up for the marketing program yet never paid one cent to any retired player under the program?
Can anyone answer these two perplexing questions?
Regards,
Dave & Heidi Pear
Bruce Jarvis
January 19th, 2010 at 12:50 PM #
To All Retired Players (particularly those receiving Parrish v. NFLPA settlement proceeds),
Increasingly, we are being heard. The effort is made difficult because the commercial press is co-opted by its economic need to cater to the NFL while trying (but not yet succeeding) to tell the sordid story of the NFL’s mistreatment of the largely forgotten men who built the League.
Congress has held hearings, but it receives much, much more in campaign contributions from League owners than it does from us and the polls show a swing back to the right in the next election which will put a damper on Congressional efforts to take away the NFL’s limited anti-trust exemption.
That leaves the courts and it means MORE THAN EVER BEFORE WE MUST DO THE WORK OURSELVES. We are good at that: We learned at an early age to band together to deliver the needed blocking, tackling, passing, catching, covering, kicking and coaching to win. And most of all to never quit, to keep our legs moving until our opponents are on their backs.
Our major strength is that our legal opponents know that our cause is just, that we have been injured, that they have profited immensely at the expense of our damaged limbs and shortened lives. They do not want our story told before a legal jury or, more importantly, in front of the TV/computer-watching, ticket-buying public as it has in the recent Conyers-led Congressional hearings.
Bernie Parrish along with Walt Roberts and Herb Adderley took big risks early to initiate litigation that succeeded (to an extent), and there are more lawsuits to come. Fearlessly, Dave Pear uses his excellent blog to club the transgressors and to shine the light on our issues going so far as to let those of us with differing opinions express them in order to inform and create a useful dialog (hits are over one MILLION/month and growing). Bob Grant and Marvin Cobb organized the first of what will become annual Summits for NFL vets which are true vehicles for progress (as opposed to the NFLPA get-togethers or the recent NFL Alumni debacle). Many others have organized events around the country and in one way or another would like to help.
Well, this is our moment. Many have e-mailed me to ask how to get involved. We have always been men of action if we know what it will take to make a difference. Bernie, Irv Cross, Dave, Bob Grant and many others have told us how:
1. SEND A CHECK OR USE A CREDIT/DEBIT CARD (WHATEVER AMOUNT YOU CAN AFFORD) TO THE ADDRESS IN BERNIE’S POST;
2. CONTACT THOSE YOU KNOW IN RADIO, TV, NEWSPAPERS AND THE BLOGOSPHERE TO GIVE THEM THE MOTHER’S MILK THEY NEED DAILY – OUR POWERFUL STORY; AND
3, REACH OUT TO ANY AND ALL POLITICIANS YOU KNOW TO TELL OUR STORY IN YOUR OWN WORDS.
We will win this, but we need to prevail sooner before very many more of us leave this earth.
Bruce Jarvis
Buffalo Bills
1971 – 1974
George Visger
January 19th, 2010 at 3:26 PM #
To Bernie, Dave, Walt, Bruce and others who have carried this fight,
Great job and keep the pressure on!
Bruce, you’re correct regarding our need to contact all media outlets to be heard. I am not a part of the settlement nor am I even vested, but I have seen firsthand the blatant disregard for human lives the NFL has shown and it’s time we let the public in on the NFL’s dirty little secret most of us have suffered with for years.
I will forward this to Tom Goldman of NPR news, who recently did a 3 day tag-a-long with me to chronicle my day-to-day existence after surviving 9 football related brain surgeries. (See link to his story on me “A Brain, A Life, Battered By Football.“)
There is strength in numbers and we need to pull everyone available into this fight.
FYI: I spoke at a Senate Hearing in Sacramento, CA on 1/13/10 for the California Brain Injury Association and opened a few eyes as to the plight of injured players and have had great response since my short talk.
Great job to all! Let’s not forget those with no voices, for they outnumber us thousands to one and built the NFL, so people like De Smith can pull their seven
six-figure salaries.George Visger
San Francisco 49′ers 1980 & 1981
Recently diagnosed with early stages of CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy)
Bernie Parrish's Next Play – Dave Pear's Official Blog | Drakz Free Online Service
January 27th, 2010 at 12:05 PM #
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