While many Americans this week will be glued to their TVs cheering on their favorite teams and bemoaning unfortunate upsets (Ohio State I’m looking at you), some will be watching the NCAA for a completely different reason.  This Monday, sports labor attorney Jeffrey Kessler filed an antitrust claim in a New Jersey federal court alleging that the NCAA is an “unlawful cartel” that has illegally capped the earning capacity of football and men’s basketball players while profiting from their labor.

The lawsuit names as defendants the NCAA as well as the five largest conferences: the Southeastern Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference, Pac-12, Big Ten and Big 12. The players listed as plaintiffs include Clemson defensive back Martin Jenkins, Rutgers basketball player J.J. Moore, UTEP tight end Kevin Perry and Cal tight end Bill Tyndall.

More on this story from ESPN and CNN. [MF]

“Caucasian” students who wore the shirts on Cinco de Mayo were told by an assistant principal to either turn the shirts inside out or to go home and receive an excused absence. School officials said that in view of threats against students wearing American flag t-shirts on Cinco de Mayo the previous year, they needed to take action to prevent violence. Read the opinion here and commentary on the court’s decision here.

[RL]

The Supreme Court of Florida has issued an advisory opinion, requested by the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, explaining that in order for unauthorized or undocumented immigrants to be admitted to the Florida Bar, Florida will have to follow a legislative path like the one adopted by California.

The federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 bars unauthorized immigrants from receiving state public benefits, including professional licenses, unless the state enacts a law “which affirmatively provides for such eligibility.” Accordingly, last year, the California legislature passed Business and Professions Code 6064(b) providing for admission of qualified unauthorized immigrants to the California Bar.

The Florida opinion sates that “[i]f the Florida Legislature were to take steps similar to those taken in California, and affirmatively provide that such unauthorized immigrants are eligible for professional licenses, or, more narrowly, a license to practice law, [applicant] and other similarly situated qualified individuals would be eligible for admission to The Florida Bar pursuant to our current rules.”

[RL]

The top court of Massachusetts, founded in the 17th century by Puritans, has ruled in the 21st century that state law does not protect a woman’s privacy from a man with a cellphone who wants to snap an “upskirt” photo of her as she rides on a Boston trolley.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-upskirt-photo-massachusetts-20140306,0,604837.story#ixzz2vEga4uwr

[JL]