Raiders Confident of Winning 2 Court Cases

Despite setbacks dealt the Los Angeles Raiders on two legal fronts this week, an attorney for the team said Thursday the organization remains confident it will prevail in each case.

“The Raiders expect to prevail on both issues because we are right,” Raider attorney Jeff Birren said.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Terry Hatter Jr. decided to let NFL lawyers pursue their theory that the league should be able to collect money from the Raiders in conjunction with the team’s 1982 move from Oakland to Los Angeles.

Also Monday, Superior Court Judge Dzintra I. Janavs dismissed the Raiders’ $9.5-million claim against the Los Angeles Coliseum Commission, in which the club contended that the commission was guilty of breach of contract.

Birren said of the case involving the league: “The NFL owes the Raiders some $60 million and all Judge Hatter did was to allow them to file a belated cross complaint, but the judge did not rule on the merits of the complaint.

“And the judge expressed concern about the complaint and he himself certified the case for immediate action to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. It is ludicrous to think that the NFL should be allowed to profit from their illegal activity (in attempting to block the Raiders’ move to Los Angeles).”

Birren said of the Raiders’ suit against the Coliseum: “The lease agreement clearly committed the commission to keep the Coliseum up to ‘a caliber consistent with facilities of other NFL teams’ including the ‘replacement’ of seating. This was spelled out in the written language of the lease agreement and in the oral promises and commitments made by three past commission presidents. . . .”