Israel Quoted on Legal Implications of Recent NFL Protests

Partner Jon Israel was quoted in a National Law Journal article, “Trump Wants NFL Players Fired. It’s Not That Simple,” covering the potential legal implications of the National Football League players’ silent protests over police violence against African American people.

Israel explained that the First Amendment and discrimination arguments won’t necessarily protect the NFL players and that there are still aspects of their agreements that could potentially allow them to be terminated.

However, Israel also discussed how unlikely it is for the NFL and its teams to take the time to terminate players in this case. “Terminating a contract in a professional sports setting is a difficult thing,” he said. “I would say, certainly, there are legal mechanisms where they could. The practical reality of the league seems that they would not do that.”