Sports and entertainment attorney Rogge Dunn was recently interviewed by Texas Sports Nation in regards to the breach of contract lawsuit filed by Ex-Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow against the Astros ballclub. In the article, Dunn offered insight regarding the contract dispute and the possibility of resolving it using private arbitration.
Luhnow claims that Astros owner Jim Crane violated his contract by firing him, which denied Luhnow benefits that include $22 million of his $31 million contract and a guaranteed portion of the ballclub’s profits.
The complaint filed by Luhnow says he is required to submit contract disputes to arbitration “by the commissioner or the commissioner’s designee.” Rogge Dunn commented on this critical part of the complaint, saying, “Jeff Luhnow will have a very difficult time defeating the arbitration agreement clause.” Dunn goes on to say, “His point is that this is an inside deal. The commissioner will protect the owner and scapegoat me, and he also gets to appoint the arbitrator, who will know on whose bread is being buttered.”
When asked about the potential outcome over whether Luhnow was fired with cause, Dunn said it will depend on the wording of Luhnow’s contract.
Dunn went on to give a few examples of what Texas Law generally considers “good cause” in regards to firing an employee. Dunn said that if an employee did “something detrimental, not just a mistake,” it would reflect good cause. Such detrimental actions, Dunn said, could include “failure to perform duties in the scope of employment that a person of ordinary prudence would have done under the same or similar circumstances.”
Rogge Dunn is an experienced sports attorney. He has represented professional coaches, professional athletes, Olympic gold medal winners, athletic department employees and University Presidents.
To learn more about Dunn’s experience, click here.
To learn more about sports and entertainment law firm Rogge Dunn Group, click here.
To read the full article by Texas Sports Nation, click here.