Judge Allows Licensing Lawsuit Against NCAA to Proceed

A federal district judge in San Francisco has denied the NCAA’s motion to dismiss a class-action lawsuit filed last July on behalf of former college athletes who believe they should be compensated for the use of their images and likenesses in videos and memorabilia. The ruling opens the door for lawyers to scrutinize the NCAA’s licensing deals, estimated at more than $4-billion. The judge denied some claims made by the only named plaintiff in the case, Ed O’Bannon, a former basketball star at UCLA, and combined the lawsuit with one filed last May by a former University of Nebraska quarterback, Sam Keller. More players are expected to be named in the coming month, Jon King, a lawyer representing the players, told USA Today. In a statement the NCAA said it was confident it would prevail in court.