American Needle vs. NFL

[CRedskinsRule]

US high court--NFL sports apparel suit can proceed | Reuters
Sounds like American Needle won.

WASHINGTON, May 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Monday, in a dispute over an exclusive licensing deal for sports merchandise, that a lawsuit against the National Football League under federal antitrust law can go forward.

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In a unanimous decision in the closely watched sports law case, the justices overturned a ruling by a U.S. appeals court in Chicago that had thrown out the lawsuit against the league over its deal on the sale of NFL-branded items like caps and other apparel.

The high court's ruling was a victory for American Needle Inc, a clothing manufacturer in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, which argued that the NFL and its 32 teams can be sued under the antitrust laws for signing an exclusive licensing deal with Reebok International in 2001.

"We conclude that the NFL's licensing activities constitute concerted action that is not categorically beyond the coverage of" federal antitrust law, Justice John Paul Stevens wrote in the court's opinion. (Reporting by James Vicini, Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)