Case study
Kentucky Speedway v NASCAR ($1.2 billion anti-trust lawsuit)
Ruling allows ISC, NASCAR to avoid anti-trust thrust – NASCAR.com
“NASCAR is very pleased by the U.S. District Court’s ruling to dismiss this case,” NASCAR’s Ramsey Poston said. “It puts an end to any question about which locations and dates NASCAR can operate its races. Like other sports such as the NFL, MLB and the NBA, NASCAR can host its events where it decides is best for the sport and its fans.”
Kentucky Speedway V. NASCAR – Law360
Situation
In the summer of 2006 wealthy owners of Kentucky Speedway launched a $1.2 billion lawsuit upon NASCAR in an effort to use the legal system to award the track a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. Beneath the surface, the case had dramatically more threatening circumstances than the awarding of a single race. The case targeted the way NASCAR has successfully conducted business for more than 60 years and threatened to destroy the business model.
Challenges
NASCAR is a complex sport and how it operates is often miss-understood. A negative ruling could have changed the sport forever. The plaintiff’s were extremely wealthy businessmen who had no incentive to fold their hand despite millions of dollars of legal fees. Public opinion could have easily swung against NASCAR in the local market where the case was being decided.
Strategy
Working in lockstep with NASCAR’s General Counsel and outside counsel led by David Boies, Mr. Poston developed a communications strategy to simplify a complex legal message while appealing to NASCAR’s fan base.
While in court filings the two sides battled over how “relevant market” was to be defined, Mr. Poston streamlined the message by grouping NASCAR into the same categories as the NFL, MLB and NBA, which each have the rights and power to decide where its games will be played.
Results
NASCAR won each round in the courtroom to maintain its successful business model and within the court of public opinion that it was acting in the interest of NASCAR’s 70 million fans, employees and vendors.
A U.S. District Court Judge initially dismissed the case in January 2008.
Likewise the appeal was won by NASCAR in December 2009 when a three judge federal panel from the U.S. 6th Circuit Court rejected claims by Kentucky Speedway that NASCAR violated antitrust laws by keeping it off the Sprint Cup Series schedule.
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