Court Upholds Decision by Judge Brody in NFL Concussion Litigation

Judge Anita B. Brody’s “Explanation and Order” of December 8, 2017 concluding that  the anti-assignment language in the NFL Concussion Litigation Settlement Agreement “unambiguously prohibits” the class members from assigning their monetary awards rendering “any such purported assignment . . . void, invalid and of no force and effect” was adopted by Judge Loretta A. Preska, Senior United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York in the case styled as Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and The People of the State of New York,  by Eric T. Schneiderman, Attorney General for the State of New York v. RD Legal Funding, LLC; RD Legal Finance, LLC; RD Legal Funding Partners, LP; and Roni Dersovitz, 17-cv-890 (S.D.N.Y. June 21, 2018).  Judge Preska stated: ” In sum, Judge Brody’s interpretation of the term “relating to” complies with New York contract law and basic principles of contract interpretation by giving meaning to the plain meaning of the phrase. Accordingly, the Court agrees with the Explanation and Order’s conclusion.  Accordingly, the Court agrees with the Explanation and Order’s conclusion.”