Judge hears NFL's motion in 'Sunday Ticket' case, says jury did not follow instructions on damages

abcnews.go.com:

The judge who presided in the class-action lawsuit filed by “Sunday Ticket” subscribers against the NFL said the jury did not follow his instructions in determining damages

LOS ANGELES — The judge who presided in the class-action lawsuit filed by “Sunday Ticket” subscribers against the NFL said the jury did not follow his instructions in determining damages.

U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez made the remark as he heard the NFL's post-trial motion asking that Gutierrez rule for the league if he finds the plaintiffs did not prove their case.

Gutierrez could also order a new trial because the eight-person jury came up with its own calculations for damages.

In his jury instructions before closing arguments on June 26, Gutierrez said “damages may not be based on guesswork or speculation. Plaintiffs must prove the reasonableness of each of the assumptions upon which the damages calculation is based.”

A federal jury on June 27 awarded $4.7 billion in damages to residential and commercial subscribers after it ruled the NFL violated antitrust laws in distributing out-of-market Sunday afternoon games on a premium subscription service.

The lawsuit covered 2.4 million residential subscribers and 48,000 businesses in the United States who paid for the package on DirecTV of out-of-market games from the 2011 through 2022 seasons. The lawsuit claimed the league broke antitrust laws by selling the package at an inflated price. The subscribers also say the league restricted competition by offering “Sunday Ticket” only on a satellite provider.

The jury of five men and three women found the NFL liable for $4,610,331,671.74 in damages to the residential class (home subscribers) and $96,928,272.90 in damages to the commercial class