In a startling development from the legal world of sports entertainment, a personal injury lawsuit presented unexpected complications for the Washington Commanders Football Team (formerly known as Pro-Football Inc.). As reported by Law.com, a federal judge in Maryland rejected the team’s motion to default to arbitration. This decision originated from a user experience that started with a casual game of football and ended in a legal tussle.
On January 2nd, 2022, a group of avid fans fell from an elevated area at FedEx Field, resulting in injuries that shift the focus from football to terms and conditions. According to court documents, the fans had received electronic tickets and were allowed to stand in the railing area where the players passed under at the end of the game. A mishap with the railing led to the group falling from a height of 5-10 feet – a range known to be responsible for a measurable percentage of work-related falls. As indicated by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 17% of work-related falls occurred from this height in 2015.
The Washington Commanders sought to dismiss the lawsuit based on an arbitration clause present on the back of the ticket. But the circumstances complicated straightforward application of this clause. First, the tickets provided to the affected fans were electronic. Second, these fans had received their tickets via a peer-to-peer exchange on a third-party platform, TickPick.
The crux of the issue rested on the question of obligation: should the fans be obligated by an arbitration clause if they had not explicitly accepted or been informed of the terms and conditions associated with the tickets? Advocating for their rights, the plaintiffs contested that they were not made aware of any consequential terms and conditions by the ticket-taker nor at any point during their entry into the stadium.
In an outcome with potential implications for third-party ticketing and event management industries, the court supported the plaintiff’s stance, ruling they were not bound by the arbitration clause.
Although this decision in favor of the plaintiffs gets them past the first hurdle, there is still a long road ahead. The injured parties will have to present their case in court, argue damages, and cover legal fees. This notable case highlights the unexpected points of intersection between digital ticketing, third-party platforms, and the fine print associated with user experiences.