Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost believes Ohio State has a case against the Big Ten and is ready to recommend a lawsuit against the conference should it come to it.
Yost spoke to the Columbus Dispatch (subscription may be required) in a report that surfaced on Wednesday. He and a team of lawyers studying Ohio State’s contracts with the Big Ten believe an “excellent contract claim for several tens of millions of dollars in lost revenue” can be demanded in a lawsuit.
There is also a belief from Yost that OSU not only has a claim against the conference, but also the member schools that voted to postpone the season. Big Ten Presidents and Chancellors reportedly voted 11-3 to postpone the fall season to spring, though there is still a question over whether a vote really occurred and the legality of it.
“I think we have a cause of action” for violating contracts between the Big Ten and Ohio State and for illegal interference in a business relationship, Yost told the Dispatch.
“If these negotiations (to play football in the fall) fall apart, we will be recommending legal action to our client, Ohio State University,” he said. Yost also believes the Big Ten lacked legal authority to cancel or delay the football season.
Yet here we are.
Obviously legal theory is one thing, and making a case for it and actually going to court and winning is another. Despite it all though, Yost is already on the move, positioning his client (OSU) and team to be ready if the need and desire arise.
Yost has directed his lawyers to “put together a case, so if negotiations break down and the season is canceled, we are prepared to make a presentation to the board (of trustees) and the administration.”
Yost believes Ohio State can sue Big Ten over football cancellation https://t.co/4rC0DoL2Qm
— Columbus Dispatch (@DispatchAlerts) September 9, 2020
This has the potential to be huge and bears watching. At the least, you can add this as another pressure point on the Big Ten. There is already a lawsuit from Nebraska players that has gained some momentum, parent protests, open records requests, petitions, and more. You have to figure if the conference doesn’t find some way to move forward with some kind of schedule in the fall, this already ugly situation will only get even more unsightly and unpleasant.
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