NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement

Article 3
No Strike/Lockout/Suit


  • Section 1. No Strike/Lockout

    Except as otherwise provided in Article 47 (Union Security), Section 6, neither the NFLPA nor any of its members will engage in any strike, work stoppage, or other concerted action interfering with the operations of the NFL or any Club for the duration of this Agreement, and no Clubs, either individually or in concert with other Clubs, will engage in any lockout for the duration of this Agreement. Any claim that a party has violated this Section 1 will not be subject to the grievance procedure or the arbitration provisions of this Agreement and the party will have the right to submit such claim directly to the courts.

  • Section 2. No Suit

    The NFLPA agrees that neither it nor any of its members, nor agents acting on its behalf, nor any member of its bargaining unit, will sue, or support financially or administratively, or voluntarily provide testimony or affidavit in, any suit against the NFL or any Club with respect to any claim relating to any conduct permitted by this Agreement, or any term of this Agreement, including, without limitation, the Articles concerning the College Draft, the Compensatory Draft, the Option Clause, the Rookie Compensation System, Veterans With Fewer Than Three Accrued Seasons, Veteran Free Agency, Franchise and Transition Players, Guaranteed League-wide Cash Spending, the Salary Cap, Minimum Team Cash Spending, and the Waiver System, and provisions applicable to the trading of players; provided, however, that nothing contained in this Section 2 will prevent the NFLPA or any player from asserting that any Club, acting individually or in concert with other Clubs, or the NFL, has breached the terms of this Agreement, the NFL Player Contract, or the NFL Constitution and Bylaws, and from processing such asserted breach as a non-injury grievance under Article 43 or asserting any claim before the System Arbitrator or the Impartial Arbitrator as provided in this Agreement. In addition, neither the NFLPA nor any of its members, agents acting on its behalf, nor any members of its bargaining unit will sue, or support financially or administratively any suit against, the NFL or any Club relating to the provisions of the Constitution and Bylaws of the NFL which are appended to the side letter dated March ___, 2020, as they were operative and administered at the beginning date of the 2020 League Year; provided, however, that nothing herein shall prevent the NFLPA, its members, agents or bargaining unit members from asserting any rights they may have under the federal labor laws or under this Agreement.

  • Section 3. Releases and Covenants Not to Sue
    (a)

    The NFLPA on behalf of itself, its members, and their respective heirs, executors, administrators, representatives, agents, successors and assigns, releases and covenants not to sue, or to support financially or administratively, or voluntarily provide testimony of any kind, including by declaration or affidavit in, any suit or proceeding against the NFL or any NFL Club or any NFL Affiliate with respect to any antitrust claim, or any other claim relating to conduct engaged in pursuant to the express terms of any collective bargaining agreement during the term of any such agreement, with respect to any League Year prior to the 2020 League Year, including, without limitation, any such claim relating to any restrictions on free agency, any franchise player designations, any transition player designations, the Draft, the Entering Player Pool, the Rookie Compensation Pool, or collusion. For purposes of clarity, this release does not cover any claim of any retired player.

    (b)

    The NFL, on behalf of itself, the NFL, and the NFL Clubs and their respective heirs, executors, administrators, representatives, agents, successors and assigns, releases and covenants not to sue, or to support financially or administratively, or voluntarily provide testimony of any kind, including by declaration or affidavit in, any suit against the NFLPA or any of its members, or agents acting on its behalf, or any member of its bargaining unit, with respect to conduct occurring prior to the execution of this Agreement.

    (c)

    The releases and covenants not to sue in Subsections (a) and (b) above shall not apply to any Injury or Non-Injury Grievance, or any other proceeding, asserted under the 2011 CBA, or to any proceeding to confirm an Injury or Non-Injury Grievance or other award under the 2011 CBA.

    (d)

    Nothing in the foregoing is intended to limit the scope of the releases and covenants not to sue contained in Article 3, Sections 3(a) or 3(b) of the Prior Agreement.