Dawson v. NCAA
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
932 F.3d 905 (2019)

- Written by Joe Cox, JD
Facts
Lamar Dawson (plaintiff), a football player for the University of Southern California (USC), filed suit on his behalf and on behalf of the other Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) players. Dawson sued the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) (defendant) and the Pac-12 Conference (of which the USC was a member) on the basis that either or both were Dawson’s employers under relevant federal and state law. The NCAA had rules that governed financial aid and prohibited additional compensation for student-athletes, and Dawson argued that these rules established that the NCAA and Pac-12 were joint employers of athletes and that by failing to pay minimum wages to those athletes, the conference and NCAA were violating labor laws of both the state and federal governments. The ultimate test of employee status under the Fair Labor Standards Act was one of economic reality. Caselaw indicated relevant factors to economic reality as including (1) the expectation of compensation, (2) the employer’s ability to hire and fire, and (3) actions that were planned or executed to evade the law. Dawson cited the NCAA and Pac-12’s control over student living arrangements, athletic eligibility, compensation, academic performance, permissible behavior, use of drugs or alcohol, and gambling as evidence of an employee arrangement. The NCAA argued that none of the factors favored a finding of employee/employer relationship. Interestingly, Dawson failed to sue USC or claim that the university was his employer, instead making his allegations only against the NCAA and the conference in which USC was a member. The trial court found that Dawson was not an employee of the NCAA or Pac-12, and Dawson appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Thomas, J.)
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