Linseman v. World Hockey Ass'n

• Decision Date: 28 October 1977
• Docket Number: Civ. No. H-77-462.
• Citation: 439 F. Supp. 1315
• Parties: Kenneth S. LINSEMAN v. WORLD HOCKEY ASSOCIATION.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Connecticut

439 F. Supp. 1315

Kenneth S. LINSEMAN v. WORLD HOCKEY ASSOCIATION.

Civ. No. H-77-462.

United States District Court, D. Connecticut.

October 28, 1977.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Brenda A. Eckert, Shipman & Goodwin, Hartford, Conn., Arthur C. Kaminsky, Howard J. Schwartz, Taft & Kaminsky, New York City, for plaintiff.

Brandon J. Hickey, Murtha, Cullina, Richter & Pinney, Hartford, Conn., Robert L. Caporale, Fine & Ambrogne, Boston, Mass., for defendant.

RULING ON MOTION FOR A PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION

CLARIE, Chief Judge.

The plaintiff Kenneth S. Linseman is a nineteen year old amateur Canadian hockey player, who is challenging the validity of a regulation of the World Hockey Association (hereinafter "WHA"), prohibiting persons under the age of 20 from playing professional hockey for any team within their association, on the ground that the restriction constitutes an unreasonable restraint of trade in violation of § 1 of the Sherman Act. 15 U.S.C. § 1. The plaintiff, who is under contract to play professional hockey for the Birmingham Bulls (hereinafter "Bulls") in the 1977-1978 season, requests a preliminary injunction during the pendency of this action to restrain the WHA from applying said regulation in any manner which would prevent Linseman from playing pursuant to the terms of his contract.¹ The Court finds that there is good cause for awarding relief and therefore grants the preliminary injunction.

Jurisdiction

The jurisdiction of this Court is properly invoked under 28 U.S.C. § 1337 and 15 U.S.C. § 15.

Facts

On June 16, 1977 the Birmingham Bulls, one of eight member teams of the WHA, selected Linseman in the annual amateur draft of the WHA.² The then President of the WHA, William MacFarland, informed the Bulls on June 17 that this selection was null and void under § 17.2(a) of the WHA's Operating Regulations, the so-called "twenty year old rule" which prohibits a WHA team from drafting any player who will not have attained his twentieth birthday during the calendar year in which the draft is held.³ Since Linseman was born on August 11, 1958 he will not reach twenty years of age until after December 31, 1977 and he was thus not eligible to be drafted under the terms of § 17.2(a). Furthermore, if the rule is upheld, he will be absolutely prohibited from playing professional hockey in the WHA during the 1977-1978 season.

Linseman is currently under contract to the Kingston Canadians of the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League, which contract provides that Linseman will not play hockey for any other amateur or professional hockey club until the expiration of his contract with Kingston, which is August 31, 1978. He is presently earning $75 per week for his services to the Kingston team. Linseman and the Birmingham Bulls entered into the present agreement on February 15, 1977, whereby the Bulls agreed to pay him a total of at least $500,000 for the next six hockey seasons, beginning with the current 1977-1978 season.

The defendant WHA has alleged that if Linseman is permitted to play, the league will suffer a loss in revenue in excess of two and one half million dollars. The defendant represents that this result will occur because the WHA has scheduled professional hockey games between member teams of the association and teams representing Russia, Czechoslovakia, Sweden and Finland to be played in the United States and Canada during the 1977-1978 season. The approval of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (hereinafter "CAHA") is required in order for the WHA teams to compete against these European teams in Canada. That organization has indicated that it would not approve those contests if the twenty-year old rule — which is the result of an agreement between the WHA and the CAHA — is violated.⁴

Discussion of the Law

1. Standards for Preliminary Injunction.

The Second Circuit has adopted two alternative tests for determining when a preliminary injunction should issue. In Sonesta International Hotels Corp. v. Wellington Associates, 483 F.2d 247 (2d Cir. 1973) the court ruled:

"The settled rule is that a preliminary injunction should issue only upon a clear showing of either (1) probable success on the merits and possible irreparable injury, or (2) sufficiently serious questions going to the merits to make them a fair ground for litigation and a balance of hardships tipping decidedly toward the party requesting the preliminary relief." Id. at 250 (emphasis in original).⁵

Some courts have added a third requirement to the showing of irreparable injury and probable success, the "balancing of equities." See e. g. Heldman v. United States, 354 F.Supp. 1241, 1249-1250 (S.D.N. Y.1973). This third factor means, in essence, that preliminary relief is not warranted unless the court finds that the importance of the injunction to the plaintiff is such that it outweighs the inconvenience which will be visited upon the defendant from the issuance of the injunction. Id. at 1250. The addition of this third factor is consistent with the teaching of the Supreme Court in Doran v. Salem Inn, Inc., 422 U.S. 922, 95 S.Ct. 2561, 45 L.Ed.2d 648 (1975):

"The traditional standard for granting a preliminary injunction requires the plaintiff to show that in the absence of its issuance he will suffer irreparable injury and also that he is likely to prevail on the merits. It is recognized, however, that a district court must weigh carefully the interests on both sides." Id. at 931, 95 S.Ct. at 2568.

These three factors are interdependent, so that if a plaintiff makes a strong showing of irreparable injury and a likelihood of success on the merits, he may be granted preliminary relief, even though the defendant has alleged that the granting of the preliminary injunction will subject him to serious harm. Heldman v. United States Lawn Tennis Association, 354 F.Supp. 1241, 1250 (S.D.N.Y.1973).

2. Irreparable Injury.

If the preliminary relief is denied, Linseman will be unable to compete in the WHA for the 1977-1978 season. Despite the defendant's assertion to the contrary, the damage he will suffer as a consequence cannot be adequately compensated with monetary damages. The plaintiff will forfeit more than the salary he has coming to him under the contract with the Bulls, if he is denied permission to play in the WHA for the current season. The career of a professional athlete is more limited than that of persons engaged in almost any other occupation. Consequently the loss of even one year of playing time is very detrimental.

That Linseman would be able to continue playing hockey with the Kingston Canadians for the current season does not reduce the impact of this injury. That team competes in an "amateur" league,⁶ whereas the Birmingham Club is in competition with professionals. The nature of Linseman's occupation is such that it requires constant practice against the very best competition possible in order to finely hone his hockey skills. The difference between the league in which the Kingston Canadians plays and that in which the Bulls compete is such that it is a difference in kind rather than one of degree. By playing in the WHA, Linseman may achieve the status of a "superstar" which would bring him financial and emotional rewards in excess of his salary from the Bulls. Such rewards are not available to members of the Kingston Canadians, for the simple reason that the league in which the team competes does not receive the same notoriety and public exposure as do teams in the WHA. Whether and to what extent Linseman would receive compensation in addition to that provided in his contract would be impossible to determine if he were presently denied the opportunity to test his skills against those of other professionals.

In a case which is very similar to the one sub judice a basketball player was granted a preliminary injunction to permit him to continue playing for the team of his choice despite his ineligibility under the league rules. On the issue of irreparable injury the court ruled:

"If Haywood is unable to continue to play professional basketball for Seattle, he will suffer irreparable injury in that a substantial part of his playing career will have been dissipated, his physical condition, skills and coordination will deteriorate from lack of high-level competition, his public acceptance as a super star will diminish to the detriment of his career, his self-esteem and his pride will have been injured and a great injury will have been perpetrated on him." Denver Rockets v. All-Pro Management, Inc., 325 F.Supp. 1049, 1057 (C.D.Cal.1971).

A professional football player was also granted preliminary relief in a similar situation, where the court found that his inability to play would cause him irreparable injury. Bowman v. National Football League, 402 F.Supp. 754, 756 (D.Minn.1975). The considerations which led those courts to find that a professional football or basketball player would suffer irreparable injury, if he were not granted preliminary relief, are equally applicable to a professional hockey player.

3. The Probability of Success on the Merits.

Linseman has alleged that the WHA's twenty-year old rule is an unreasonable restraint of trade in violation of § 1 of the Sherman Act. 15 U.S.C. § 1. At the outset it must be noted that although baseball, largely for historical reasons, has been ruled exempt from the antitrust laws, Flood v. Kuhn, 407 U.S. 258, 92 S.Ct. 2099, 32 L.Ed.2d 728 (1972), no other professional sport enjoys a similar exemption. See Philadelphia World Hockey Club Inc. v. Philadelphia Hockey Club, Inc., 351 F.Supp. 462 (D.C.Pa.1972) (hockey); Radovich v. National Football League, 352 U.S. 445, 451-452, 77 S.Ct. 390, 1 L.Ed.2d 456 (1957) (football); Boston Professional Hockey Association v. Cheevers, 348 F.Supp. 261 (D.C.Mass.), remanded on other grounds 472 F.2d 127 (1st Cir. 1972) (hockey); United States v. International Boxing Club, 348 U.S. 236, 75 S.Ct. 259, 99 L.Ed. 290 (1955) (...