ST. LOUIS — Rams owner Stan Kroenke could have to answer some more questions in the ongoing lawsuit between St. Louis and the NFL regarding the Rams' move to Los Angeles.
The St. Louis legal team has filed a notice in court saying they plan to conduct a video deposition of Stan Kroenke. He has already been deposed once before.
The notice was filed on Oct. 28.
The planning for another deposition of Kroenke comes after the ESPN report from the recent NFL owners' meetings kicked off some new drama.
The ESPN report said Kroenke could be positioning himself to back out of carrying the financial burden of the case for the league. This turn caused some drama among owners in the league, with Giants owner John Mara reportedly saying many wouldn't have voted for the relocation had they known Kroenke wouldn't be footing any possible legal bills.
Mara was one of four NFL owners recently fined by the court for not turning over requested financial documents for the case.
Sports legal analyst Daniel Wallach said the revelations from the owners' meeting described in the ESPN article should only help the case for St. Louis.
"It strengthens St. Louis' hand considerably because the owners are not presenting a unified front. They're like rats jumping off a sinking ship," Wallach said.
So, what are the chances this still goes to trial? Or could it still be settled beforehand?
"A trial would be insanity for the National Football League. It is the last resort. Under no circumstances should the league take a case like this to a St. Louis jury that is poised to award potentially $1 billion or more of damages," Wallach said. "Because once it goes to a trial and a jury renders a verdict on a lot of factual issues here, the NFL's chances before an appellate court are going to go down significantly. Because factual determinations made by a jury are usually respected by appellate courts."