Junior Seau Lawsuit Continues, Family Unhappy With Settlement

Junior Seau’s family have raised their objections to a proposed $760million lawsuit settlement that was arranged by the NFL to pay off thousands of former NFL players.

Around 4,500 former players have come together to make the case, which charges that the National Football League downplayed the risk of concussions in the sport. However, it’s believed that over 15,000 more players could be eligible to receive compensation too.

The proposed settlement would give $5million to each former player that was diagnosed with a particular brain condition. This ailment is normally generated after years of repeated hits to the head, which they would have received during their NFL careers.

However, Seau’s family believed that the deal wasn’t sufficient enough to cover individuals who were seeking wrongful-death claims, and only caters to those that had been injured.

Attorneys for the Seau family have revealed that family members of retired or deceased players will actually only receive a small payment that might just amount to a few thousand dollars.

Seau was a highly decorated NFL player, who spent his career with the San Diego Chargers, Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots, and he was even named to the Pro Bowl 12 times.

However, in 2012 he took his own life after he shot himself in the chest. A study showed that Seau was undiagnosed with CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a debilitating brain condition that is caused by repeated blows to the head. This disease leads to dementia and aggression.

The Seau family believes that any settlement from this lawsuit has to consider the lives and needs of the survivors of players who died because of injuries they sustained while playing.

Their attorneys wrote, “Mr. Seau’s children have their own claims for the wrong the NFL did to them. His children are not suing for their father’s pain and suffering, they are suing for their own.”

Judge Anita Brody rejected the settlement offer earlier this month, which had been filed in U.S. district court in Philadelphia.

Legal experts have now predicted that the NFL will negotiate a higher settlement plan with its plaintiffs. This will be to cease concerns that there isn’t enough funds to assist former players that have brain injuries.

The Seau family attorneys have specifically asked Judge Brody to consider their objections as they evaluate future settlements.

Seau is just one of a number of current and former NFL players that have committed suicide or acted extremely violently over the last decade. Because of their actions the NFL has made numerous rule changes, which has included the ban on a player’s use of his helmet “to butt, spear or ram an opponent violently or unnecessarily.”