U.S. Soccer chief legal officer, Lydia Wahlke attends a meeting of the organization's board of directors Friday, Dec. 6, 2019, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex ArbogastUS Soccer Places Chief Legal Officer on Leave
After a trial delay, both sides are expected to take advantage of the extra time to explore settlement talks because of the uncertainty over the impact of COVID-19 on the court.
April 20, 2020 at 05:08 PM
3 minute read
Between the coronavirus and legal blunders, the U.S. Soccer Federation has drastically shaken up its executive lineup, including suspending chief legal officer Lydia Wahlke.
Meanwhile the women players' class action lawsuit over equal pay, which was scheduled to go to trial in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on May 5, has been delayed. Judge R. Gary Klausner moved Monday's pretrial conference to June 1 and the trial date to June 16.
The 28 players-plaintiffs include Olympic soccer stars Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan and Carli Lloyd.
Both sides are expected to take advantage of the extra time to explore settlement talks because of the uncertainty over the impact of COVID-19 on the court. Still, the players' law firm, Winston & Strawn, filed motions Monday opposing the federation's motion for summary judgment. Latham & Watkins represents the defendant.
The virus struck Illinois a few weeks ago as the Chicago-based federation placed Wahlke on administrative leave for an unannounced length of time and just as it took on a new chief executive officer and a new president. Most of the changes appear related to the lawsuit's handling.
Neither Wahlke nor the federation returned messages seeking comment Monday. Wahlke has been the federation's general counsel for about three years.
Previously she was general counsel for the Chicago Cubs. Prior to joining the Cubs, she served as an associate at Kirkland & Ellis.
In late March the federation named Will Wilson as its new CEO joining newly named president Cindy Parlow Cone. They announced March 24 their first priority was to settle the women's national team's lawsuit.
The year-old suit accuses the federation of gender discrimination that violates the U.S. Equal Pay Act and U.S. civil rights laws.
The federation's former CEO retired last year after the suit was filed. Wahlke was placed on leave and the former president left under pressure last month after an outcry over a court filing that said players on the U.S. women's national team had less skill than their male colleagues. The uproar also saw Seyfarth Shaw withdraw as lead counsel representing the federation.
Cone, the new president, has said an outside firm has been retained to review the decision-making that led to the brief's filing. The federation has not yet reported on what, if anything, the outside firm found.
On April 16 Wilson wrote an open letter to U.S. Soccer members announcing that even more executives were leaving along with other changes due to coronavirus-related economic difficulties. The letter did not mention Wahlke's position.
Wilson wrote in the letter, "Upon officially joining the organization just over two weeks ago, it became quickly apparent that the status quo was not sustainable for the economic viability of the federation."
Among the changes are the departures of chief administrative officer Brian Remedi and of Tonya Wallach, chief talent and inclusion officer. An unstated number of other staff members were also furloughed or took pay cuts, and youth programs were cut for both boys and girls.
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