Zion Williamson’s Legal Team Takes Tough Loss In North Carolina Federal Court

Zion Williamson’s rookie season with the New Orleans Pelicans is on hold but his court battles in Florida and North Carolina are still playing out. On Tuesday, a federal judge in North Carolina ruled against a discovery motion filed by Williamson’s legal team, led by noted sports attorney Jeffery Klein. The motion was filed during the first week of March 2020.

Williamson’s legal team was asking the North Carolina federal court to approve beginning the discovery process in the pending lawsuit against Gina Ford and Prime Sports Marketing. United States Magistrate Judge Joe L. Webster denied the request, and now Williamson and his legal team are in a holding pattern.

Williamson is suing Ford and Prime Sports in an attempt to void a marketing deal signed on April 20, 2019. On May 31, Williamson sent notice to Ford that he was voiding the agreement. Williamson then filed suit in North Carolina. Ford, President of Prime Sports, followed with a lawsuit against Williamson in a Florida federal court. The agreement contained a clause that stated Williamson would owe Ford $100 million if the contract was terminated within five years.

Williamson’s suit alleges the marketing contract signed in April 2019 was illegal according to North Carolina’s Uniform Athlete Agents Act. Since Prime Sports was not a certified member of the National Basketball Players Association or a registered athlete agent in North Carolina or Florida, Williamson’s suit argues the contract should be worthless. Furthermore, the contract did not have a specific clause required under the UAAA, concerning the loss of NCAA student-athlete eligibility.

In the most recent motion, Williamson’s legal team argued that since Ford rejected a proposed joint discovery process to cover both lawsuits, the North Carolina courts should allow this case to proceed with the discovery process immediately. Williamson’s team argued it was in “the interest of judiciary efficiency to start discovery” in North Carolina after Ford rejected any consolidation of the discovery process.

Ford does not want to move forward with the discovery process in North Carolina until that state’s federal court rules on a pending motion to dismiss. However, Ford does want to proceed with the discovery process in pending Florida suit. Williamson was pushing for a consolidated discovery process to cover both cases.

In the North Carolina lawsuit, Williamson is alleging that he was misled when he signed the contract with Prime Sports. He claims he went through the proper steps to void the contract, including sending a letter to Ford and Prime Sports. Ford disputed the action, claiming breach of contract. She is seeking $100 million in damages in the Florida-based lawsuit. Williamson is hoping for a court ruling declaring the initial contract null and void.

A consolidated discovery process would have not only lessened the legal fee burden but would have kept Williamson off of the witness stand. This North Carolina decision and the Florida court’s ruling in December keep alive the chances that Williamson will have to testify about his high school recruitment and playing days at Duke University.

While none of Williamson’s actions in high school will affect his position with the New Orleans Pelicans, both the team and the player could use one less distraction during these unusual times. Instead, Williamson is now waiting on other off-ball court motions to go his way before he can proceed with the rest of his professional career. Even with the basketball world at your fingertips, it is difficult to move forward with marketing deals with a possible $100 million settlement hanging in the balance.