MarkvW said:
If Lance can keep the case alive and defeat the expected motion to stay discovery pending resolution of the motion to dismiss then he can use the expansive discovery provisions of the federal rules to discover every last little thing that USADA knows about him. That, alone, is a good reason for bringing the case. Not a legitimate reason, but . . .
That is a stretch to get to discovery. He asked for an injunction based on constitutional protections. His team is grasping. The law is pretty clear here and precedent.
Graham v. United States Anti-Doping Agency, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 34637 (D.N.C. 2011)
The court stated, "Again, although Graham, similar to Lee, purports to present claims outside of the Amateur Sports Act, namely, under the Constitution and the law of slander, ultimately, he is contesting his eligibility to coach amateur athletes involved in Olympic sports, a remedy only available under the Amateur Sports Act. Consequently, these claims are outside the subject matter jurisdiction of this court. The court further notes that the two exceptions to this general rule, as laid out in Lee, do not apply in this case. First, the court does recognize that it has a limited role in ensuring that the amateur sports organizations follow their own rules for determining eligibility. However, in this case, USADA followed the proper protocol in determining the proper sanction for Graham. USADA offered arbitration to Graham, but he subsequently withdrew.8 As a result of the withdrawal, [*19] Graham was subject to any sanction proposed by USADA, which in this case was a lifetime ban from coaching amateur athletes involved in Olympic sports. Second, although the court is in recognition that the Amateur Sports Act does not explicitly preempt a federal right independent of those conferred by the Act, this exception is not applicable here as Graham's claims are, once again, labeled as violations of constitutional rights and slander, but essentially seek to challenge his eligibility to coach amateur Olympic athletes. Therefore, USADA's Motion to Dismiss [DE-19] is ALLOWED for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Because these claims are dismissed pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), the court does not reach USADA's ground for dismissal pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6)."
So we have subject matter jurisdiction before we even get to Lance's crazy claims.
That arbitration is mandated by the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act, which includes a due process checklist that delineates athletes’ procedural rights. Any appeals of the arbitrators’ decision would be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, sport’s highest authority, and that decision would be final.