Nevada Supreme Court Denies NFL Rehearing in Gruden Case

The Nevada Supreme Court unanimously (7-0) denied the NFL’s request to rehear an August decision that allows former Raiders coach Jon Gruden to pursue a public lawsuit against the league rather than be forced into NFL arbitration. The August ruling concluded the league’s arbitration clause did not apply to Gruden as a former employee and described the clause as procedurally and substantively unconscionable, in part because Commissioner Roger Goodell would oversee disputes involving himself. Gruden alleges the NFL and Goodell weaponized leaked emails that led to his 2021 resignation and lost endorsements; the court did not decide whether the league actually leaked the emails. The denial moves the suit closer to a public trial that could probe who authorized the disclosures and potentially expose internal NFL practices. The NFL declined to comment, and its likely remaining option is a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, though certiorari is rarely granted and that route is uncertain.