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Battle plan Last place to resolve principle is in a civil damages suit
The most hopeful thing you can say about Kelci Stringer's planned wrongful death lawsuit against Minnesota Vikings coaches and players is that she starts out third-and-long. The widow and her attorneys face a real battle as they try to pin responsibility for the death of Korey Stringer on his fellow employees, head coach Dennis Green, trainer Chuck Barta and their assistants. The law of Minnesota, like most of the 50 states, limits claims for a death at work to workers' compensation. To move beyond the benefits available under workers' compensation, Kelci Stringer must somehow show that the coaches and the trainers were guilty of "gross" or "willful" conduct. A simple error of judgment is not enough. Negligence is not enough. The challenge will be to convince a jury in the Twin Cities that the coaches and the trainers had a reckless or conscious disregard for Korey Stringer's health and welfare.
The Vikings' insurance company and its attorneys will ask, quite reasonably, why coaches and trainers would deliberately injure a star player in whom they had invested millions of dollars. It will be an inquiry that will be difficult to answer. For Kelci Stringer to prevail, she will need proof, probably from other players, that the trainers ignored Korey Stringer's distress and ignored it more than once. Her lawsuit against the team physicians will be less difficult. Her lead attorney, Stanley Chesley, and his firm are veterans of many liability cases against hospitals and physicians. They will be able to produce experts who will criticize everything that happened, from the team physical to the moment of death. It's the kind of things the great trial lawyers, like Chesley, are able to do. And the timeline of events leading to Korey Stringer's death offers them a promising place to start. Here are some other things about the Stringer lawsuit that may prove to be interesting:
Dick Butkus, a Hall of Fame linebacker of the Chicago Bears, settled medical malpractice claim against the Bears' team physician at the end of his career. The settlement also resolved a contract dispute, and all of it was treated as non-taxable money for Butkus. It is a model for Kelci Stringer to follow.
What is she waiting for? It will be at least a year after the date of filing before she approaches the time of trial. Isn't it better to file now and start the clock running toward a trial date?
The best way to get them all together is to file suit and ask the judge to call a settlement conference. If there is any good will left between Kelci Stringer and the Vikings, they could get together on a voluntary basis to explore the settlement prospects.
The last place to resolve a matter of principle is in a civil damages lawsuit. If it's principle she's concerned, she should get together with team owner Red McCombs and Green and try to work out a settlement. Sports Illustrated legal analyst Lester Munson regularly holds court on sports law and business matters on CNNSI.com. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer.
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