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NCAA files another petition to delay Ed O'Bannon case

The NCAA wants the Ed O'Bannon antitrust lawsuit delayed. (Isaac Brekken, AP Photo)

Lawyers for EA Sports want the Ed O'Bannon lawsuit dismissed. (Isaac Brekken, AP Photo)

The NCAA filed an emergency petition late Thursday night with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco in an attempt to delay the antitrust trial led by former UCLA basketball player Ed O'Bannon, reports Steve Berkowitz of USA Today.

The trial is scheduled to start June 9. The emergency petition is the fifth attempt by the NCAA to have the trial delayed or redefined. The previous four attempts were rejected by the appeals court.

The NCAA is asking the appeals court to rule that the O'Bannon antitrust trial should not start before the Sam Keller trial, which involves player likenesses in college football video games. That trial is scheduled to start in March 2015.

Two weeks ago, the court rejected another motion from the NCAA, who wanted the court to reconsider a ruling that said the NCAA can not defend itself by saying that money from sports like football and basketball is used to fund smaller sports and women’s sports.

STAPLES: Ed O’Bannon v. the NCAA: A complete case primer

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At issue in this bid is the NCAA's contention that there are issues overlapping issues between the Keller case, which includes a monetary damages claim and would involve a jury trial, and the O'Bannon case, which has been narrowed to a bid for an injunction that will be decided by District Judge Claudia Wilken in what is known as a bench trial. The NCAA is arguing that elements of the O'Bannon case related to video games will have to be heard by the jury in the Keller case, so a ruling that Wilken makes in the O'Bannon case could affect how a jury rules in Keller case.