Lawsuit of the Day

Lawsuit of the Day: Mike Leach v. Texas Tech University

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We don’t know anything about college football, but apparently many of you do — and are eager to talk about the firing earlier today of coach Mike Leach, by Texas Tech University. There are a number of legal angles here.
First, the disputes between Leach and Texas Tech have already resulted in litigation. Earlier this week, following his suspension in the wake of allegations that he mistreated a player, Leach moved for a temporary restraining order and injunction. His motion for a TRO appears here.
There was supposed to be a hearing on the TRO this afternoon, but TTU fired Leach before the hearing. From ESPN:

[Leach’s attorney Ted] Liggett said that Texas Tech general counsel Pat Campbell approached him outside the courtroom and told him that win, lose or draw in the hearing, Leach was out, effective immediately.

Liggett told the judge there was no need for the hearing on Leach’s request that he be reinstated to coach the Alamo Bowl. Texas Tech plays Michigan State on Saturday in San Antonio….

Liggett said he planned to file a lawsuit on Leach’s behalf against the school “soon.”

“We can guarantee that the fight has just begun,” he said.

A second legal connection, after the jump.


How many college football coaches have law degrees? As one ATL reader points out, Mike Leach does — and even writes for law journals:

I’m sure you guys are hearing about this, but who doesn’t like law and football? Mike Leach graduated from Pepperdine University School of Law and wrote an article for the upcoming Texas Tech Law Review Vol. 42.

According to Coach Leach’s bio, he graduated in the top third of his class at Pepperdine Law, in 1986. As for how Leach made the transition from law to football, see Bitter Lawyer (“[A]t the time I graduated, I was broke and I had a wife, a child and about $40,000 in [law school] loans. So, I thought I would just give coaching a try….”).
If you have thoughts on the firing of Mike Leach, either from a legal or football standpoint, feel free to share them in the comments. You can access his motion for a TRO here. Additional links are collected below.
Texas Tech fires football coach Mike Leach in wake of receiver’s allegation [Associated Press via Deadspin]
Texas Tech Coach Mike Leach Fired After Claims of Abuse [ABC News]
Leach fired short of Tech’s bowl game [ESPN.com]
Texas Tech Coach Mike Leach Heads To Court To Battle Suspension [WSJ Law Blog]
Mike Leach: Texas Tech Head Coach, J.D. [Bitter Lawyer]
Mike Leach v. Texas Tech University [PDF]

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