Vered Yakovee, former associate general counsel of the Miami Heat. (Courtesy photo: Vincent Rives)

The former Miami Heat lawyer who says she was fired for requesting maternity leave has failed to wriggle free of an arbitration agreement she signed when she was hired. 

Vered Yakovee, who served as an associate general counsel for the NBA team from March 2015 until December 2019, had argued that the agreement was unconscionable because it was presented as a "take it or leave it" proposition and she wasn't given enough time to review or negotiate the terms of the agreement. 

Yakovee is a veteran sports law attorney who previously served as associate team counsel for the Boston Celtics, taught sports law at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law and was editor-in-chief for the American Bar Association's entertainment and sports lawyer publication. 

She also asserted that the stand-alone, two-page arbitration agreement, which allows the Heat or Yakovee to arbitrate "any controversy" with the American Arbitration Association, contained a cost provision that is against public policy. 

Finally, Yakovee argued that the court, not an arbitrator, must determine the validity of the arbitration agreement, which was silent on that particular issue. 

Miami U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno rejected each of Yakovee's arguments, holding first that it is "well-settled that an arbitrator decides whether an agreement is unconscionable." Moreno could have ended his analysis here, but he went on to address Yakovee's remaining assertions. 

She had contended that the cost clause, which stated that an arbitrator may award reasonable fees to a prevailing party but "shall not otherwise award attorney's fees or costs," rendered the agreement unenforceable because fees and costs must be recoverable when allowed by applicable statute and not "otherwise." 

Moreno disagreed with that interpretation. He also held that, even if the cost provision was unenforceable, it could be severed from the arbitration agreement. 

As for Yakovee's argument that she wasn't given enough time to review the agreement, Moreno held that her allegations were "insufficient to amount to procedural unconscionability." 

He noted that Yakovee hadn't presented "any evidence, via affidavit or otherwise, to explain any specific reason she felt rushed to sign the agreement, had no ability to negotiate it, or lacked employment alternatives.

"This stand-alone Arbitration Agreement was sufficiently straightforward for an executive to understand. It was not buried in fine print," he added. 

The dispute is now before the American Arbitration Association, according to Yakovee's attorney, Erika Rotbart of Deutsch Rotbart & Associates in Boca Raton, Florida.

"Regardless of the venue, be it court or arbitration, we remain confident in the allegations set forth in Ms. Yakovee's complaint," she stated Wednesday in an email. 

The Heat's attorney, Paul Ranis of Greenberg Traurig in Fort Lauderdale, did not respond to a message seeking comment. 

In its motion to compel arbitration, the Heat described Yakovee as having been a "disruptive, toxic, and sub-standard employee who single-handedly consumed more attention from human resources and senior management than any other individual employee." 

The Heat also accused Yakovee of filing a "frivolous and factually deficient lawsuit" as part of an attempt to circumvent an arbitration agreement, tarnish the organization's reputation and "obtain a premature trial through press and public speculation."

The team contends that the decision to fire Yakovee was based solely on her "deficient attitude, disruptive behavior" and poor job performance.

Yakovee alleges that the Heat's general counsel, Raquel Libman, treated her with "disdain and hostility" when she took maternity leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act after adopting a newborn baby. 

She said the situation culminated with the Heat's president of business operations calling her into his office, where he "told her she was terminated, and to go home immediately." 

Read More: 

Fired Miami Heat Lawyer Accuses Team, General Counsel of Retaliation Over Her Maternity Leave

Miami Heat's Defense Against FMLA Suit: Former In-House Lawyer Was 'Toxic' and 'Disruptive'