1. This action challenges the unlawful conduct of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”), its President, and the former Chairman of its Executive Committee in connection with their improper interference in and gross mishandling of a criminal matter that falls far outside the scope of their authority. In particular, this lawsuit seeks to remedy the harms caused by their unprecedented imposition of sanctions on Pennsylvania State University (“Penn State”) for conduct that did not violate the NCAA's rules and was unrelated to any athletics issue the NCAA could permissibly regulate. As part of their unlawful conduct, and as alleged in more detail below, Defendants breached their contractual obligations and violated their duties of good faith and fair dealing, intentionally and tortiously interfered with Plaintiffs' contractual relations, and defamed and commercially disparaged Plaintiffs.
2. The NCAA is a voluntary a**ociation of member institutions of higher education that operates pursuant to a constitution and an extensive set of bylaws. The constitution and bylaws define and constrain the scope of the NCAA's authority, and are designed to regulate athletic competition between members in a manner that promotes fair competition and amateurism. The constitution and bylaws authorize the NCAA to prohibit and sanction conduct that is intended to provide any member institution with a recruiting or competitive advantage in athletics.
3. The NCAA has no authority to investigate or impose sanctions on member institutions for criminal matters unrelated to athletic competition at the collegiate level.
Moreover, when there is an alleged violation of the NCAA's rules, the constitution and bylaws require the NCAA to provide interested parties with certain, well-defined procedural protections, including rights of appeal. The constitution and bylaws are expressly intended to benefit not only the member institutions, but also their staff, students, and other individuals affected by conduct subject to potential NCAA oversight and sanctions.
4. In the course of the events that gave rise to this lawsuit, Defendants engaged in malicious, unjustified, and unlawful acts, including penalizing and irreparably harming Plaintiffs for criminal conduct committed by a former a**istant football coach. But the criminal conduct, which occurred in 1998 and 2001, was not an athletics issue properly regulated by the NCAA.
Defendants' actions far exceeded the scope of the NCAA's authority and were taken in knowing and reckless disregard of Plaintiffs' rights.
5. Among other things, Defendants circumvented the procedures required by the NCAA's rules and violated and conspired with others to violate Plaintiffs' rights, causing Plaintiffs significant harm. Defendants took these actions based on conclusions reached in a flawed, unsubstantiated, and controversial report that Defendants knew or should have known was not the result of a thorough, reliable investigation; had been prepared without complying with the NCAA's investigative rules and procedures; reached conclusions that were false, misleading, or otherwise unworthy of credence; and reflected an improper “rush to judgment” based on unsound speculation and innuendo. Defendants also knew or should have known that by embracing the flawed report, they would effectively terminate the search for truth and cause Plaintiffs grave harm. Nonetheless, Defendants took their unauthorized and unlawful actions in an effort to deflect attention away from the NCAA's institutional failures and to expand the scope of their own authority by exerting control over matters unrelated to recruiting and athletic competition.
6. In failing to comply with required procedures, Defendants unlawfully accused the members of the Penn State Board of Trustees and the coaching staff of failing to prevent unethical conduct, and deprived them of important procedural protections required under the NCAA's rules. Defendants also breached the NCAA's obligations owed to uninvolved studentathletes, coaches, administrators, and competitors, including the duty to ensure that those individuals are treated fairly in any NCAA enforcement action. In the course of their unlawful conduct, Defendants broadly criticized and disparaged the entire Penn State community, falsely, unfairly, and irresponsibly accusing Plaintiffs of enabling and directly causing reprehensible criminal conduct.
7. Because Defendants breached the NCAA's duties and contractual obligations to Plaintiffs, and because Defendants' unlawful and unauthorized conduct has caused and is continuing to cause substantial harms, Plaintiffs are bringing this lawsuit to remedy the harms caused by the NCAA's conduct, to enforce the NCAA's obligations, and to put an end to Defendants' ongoing misconduct, as well as their misuse and abuse of authority.