Legal battle surrounds Commanders sale as former employee files lawsuit
Former Commanders executive sues for defamation
This week, National Football League owners are expected to vote on the sale of the Washington Commanders. It means Dan Snyder could soon be on his way out, but it doesn’t mean area football fans are done hearing about him altogether. FOX 5's Josh Rosenthal explains why from the newsroom.
BETHESDA, Md. (FOX 5 DC) - This week, National Football League owners are expected to vote on the sale of the Washington Commanders.
It means Dan Snyder could soon be on his way out, but it doesn’t mean area football fans are done hearing about him altogether.
A former team employee, Jason Friedman, has filed a lawsuit against the Commanders as well as attorney John Brownlee, who has represented the team. The suit stems from Friedman’s closed-door testimony to Congress, during which he made allegations of "financial improprieties" committed by the team, including "the team’s improper withholding of revenue from the NFL, and its failure to return security deposits to many season ticket holders despite an obligation to do so."
Friedman’s lawsuit says the team responded by "repeatedly and publicly calling him a liar, accusing him of committing the federal crime of perjury, and falsely implying that he was terminated as part of the team’s sexual harassment scandal that was being widely reported in the press."
The lawsuit also accuses Brownlee of telling a local sports talk radio station that the team terminated Friedman "because he became the very toxic work environment that the team was trying to rid itself [of]."
Brooklyn Law School Professor Jodi Balsam, a former NFL in-house counsel, told FOX 5 Monday that she doesn’t think Friedman’s civil suit will ever make it to a jury.
"I do think he has a good chance of getting some sort of pre-trial settlement out of the Washington Commanders," Balsam explained, adding that Snyder is not named in the lawsuit, but the Commanders are.
As a result, it’s likely Snyder will soon no longer own the team, and instead, a group led by Josh Harris will.
"The minute he owns the team, all of its problems are his problems," Balsam said of Harris. "It just seems that there’s no upside to publicly litigating these claims."
Friedman’s suit asks for more than $7.5 million in damages. Balsam said she doesn’t think he’ll receive close to that amount and is instead more likely to walk away with a number in the low six figures.
Commanders settle with Maryland over season-ticket holders’ money
The Washington Commanders have agreed to return security deposits to former season ticket holders and pay a $250,000 penalty in a settlement with the state of Maryland.
The Commanders issued a statement Monday evening, with a team spokesperson telling FOX 5: "We believe this complaint is completely without merit, and we will vigorously defend the team against these false allegations."
Attempts to reach Brownlee weren’t immediately successful.
Read Friedman's lawsuit below: