Court Grants Final Approval of Retired NFL Player Settlement

The plaintiffs in Dryer v. National Football League brought the case on behalf of themselves and a putative class of retired NFL players seeking compensation from the NFL's unauthorized use of their names, images, and likenesses in promotional materials.After United States Magistrate Judge Boylan appointed Dan Gustafson as Lead Settlement Counsel for the plaintiffs, Mr. Gustafson worked on behalf of the purported class to reach a settlement with the NFL. A settlement was reached earlier this year, which United States District Court Judge Paul A. Magnuson preliminarily approved in April.Today, after previously holding a hearing and having considering the objections of some class members,  Judge Magnuson granted final approval of the settlement. Judge Magnuson noted that "the vast majority of class members see the settlement at issue here for what it is: a boon to those thousands upon thousands of former NFL players who can now reap the collective benefit of a large financial payout to a fund organized solely for their benefit, overseen by their comrades-in-arms." Judge Magnuson also noted the "icing on the cake" of former players having "an avenue to pursue commercial interests in their own images . . . for the first time in conjunction with the NFL's copyrights and trademarks."