On Feb. 3, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit agreed to hear an interlocutory appeal on the question of whether Division I student athletes can be employees of their schools solely by virtue of their participation in interscholastic athletics.
In Johnson et al. v. National Collegiate Athletic Association et al., pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the plaintiffs allege that Division I student athletes are employees of the NCAA and certain of its member colleges and universities under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and various state wage and hour laws, similar to students engaged in work study programs. Relying heavily on Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s concurrence in NCAA v. Alston, on Aug. 25, 2021, the District Court denied a motion to dismiss the complaint, holding that the plaintiffs had plausibly alleged they are employees within the meaning of the FLSA.
The NCAA and defendant schools sought permission from the District Court to file interlocutory appeals of the motion to dismiss, asking the Third Circuit to review whether student athletes can be considered employees. On Dec. 28, 2021, the District Court denied the NCAA’s request for an interlocutory appeal but granted the request from the defendant schools. Specifically, the District Court certified the following question for appeal to the Third Circuit: “Whether NCAA Division I student athletes can be employees of the colleges and universities they attend...
China has removed all medical advertisements on national television channels containing false claims as of the end of March, the National Radio and Television Administration said on Thursday. The ...