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US: Student-Athletes Seek $45m in legal fees over antitrust lawsuit

By  |  September 12, 2017

Last week in a lawsuit brought by student-athletes claiming that the value of their scholarships was anti-competitively capped by NCAA rules, the student-athletes sought approval of nearly US$45 million in attorneys’ fees, expenses and costs for class counsel. The request comes on the heels of a US$209 million settlement reached between the athletes, the NCAA, and 11 major athletic conferences in March after extensive discovery and settlement negotiations in the litigation.

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    The settlement would compensate tens of thousands of Division I college athletes who played men’s or women’s basketball or bowl subdivision football who received traditional sports scholarships rather than a new version that covers the full cost of attending school.

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    The request seeks approximately US$41.7 million in fees (or 20% of the common fund), close to US$3.2 million in costs and expenses, along with US$20,000 each as an award to the four named plaintiffs, which includes former West Virginia University running back Shawne Alston among others. Athletes covered by the settlement who played their sport for four years will receive an average of US$6,000.

    This amount is down from the plaintiffs’ initial estimate of US$6,800, but this filing said that since the settlement was reached, “many additional schools are paying or have stated an intent to” provide cost-of-attendance-based scholarships. As a result, “the number of class members eligible to receive payment has grown significantly.”

    Full Content: Law 360

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