The lawsuit involving Warner Bros. Discovery and the NBA already has a judge.
And the judge himself has already raised a question about his possible conflict of interest in the case.
WBD, parent company of TNT, sued the NBA Friday over its failed media rights negotiations with the league. Earlier in the week, TNT matched Amazon’s bid for a slice of the new NBA media rights package, only to have the NBA announce it had rejected WBD’s effort to use a matching rights clause in their previous contract.
There will be quite a bit to unravel in court, but judge Joel M. Cohen, who has been assigned to the case, made an interesting revelation Monday — he once served as an attorney in a lawsuit against the NBA that was settled in 2014.
Cohen laid out the details in a letter obtained by Daniel Wallach. He explained that he was counsel for the Spirits of St. Louis, a defunct team from the old ABA, which dissolved when four teams merged with the NBA in 1976.
The Spirits’ former owners sued the NBA and the four former ABA teams involved in the merger.
“The case was resolved in 2014,” Cohen wrote. “I do not believe this raises any recusal issues, but wanted to disclose the facts and see if there are any concerns.”
NEW: The judge assigned to the WBD v. NBA case has notified the parties that he previously represented the St. Louis Spirits (a former ABA team) in a federal court lawsuit against the NBA over visual media rights revenues owed “in perpetuity” to the former owners of the Spirits. pic.twitter.com/LLhZINjehD
— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) July 29, 2024
That suit worked out for Cohen and his clients. Brothers Daniel and Ozzie Silna, former owners of the ABA’s Spirits, had negotiated a deal with the NBA and the four teams that merged with the league in 1976, the Nets, Nuggets, Pacers, and Spurs, giving them 1/7th of the NBA TV revenue those teams earned, in perpetuity. The Silnas sued in 2009, alleging that new sources of NBA media revenue, such as NBA TV, should be included in that deal.
The two sides reached an agreement, with the former Spirits owners receiving a one-time $500 million payment.
Whether Cohen’s work in that case should justify his recusal remains to be seen. Cohen offered to provide each side further information on his involvement if requested.
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.