D'Arcy Law Firm Awarded $1.37 Million
Atlantic City, NJ – November 26, 2002
Whether you know it or not, the present practice of sports medicine was put on trial in a jury trial of an ex-Philadelphia Flyer Dave Babych against the Team’s Doctor, which ended with a $1.37 Million Dollar Verdict for the player on October 31, 2002, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The limits of “winning at all costs” and the role of team doctors has received national attention as a result of this verdict. The lead trial lawyer on behalf of the ex-Flyer, Patrick T. D’Arcy, of the D’Arcy Law Firm in Galloway Township, N.J., is now offering his expert opinion why it is so important that professional athletes carefully evaluate their injuries before “playing through the pain” and why he was able to convince a jury in New Jersey that the present system needs to be changed.
When recently asked to comment on the issue, Mr. D’Arcy explained that “pro sports is a business, a big business, and winning usually translates into mega dollars for the owners of professional sports organizations. Combine that with the fact that professional athletes are generally very tough people and you have the potential for disaster when players are injured. The obvious problem is that sports team’s doctors are retained by the team and not the player. There often arises a clear conflict of interest between what will be best for the player and what will be best for the team. Unfortunately, at times, the team doctor decides to protect the interests of the team over the player, or more to the point, over the interests of his patient. When this happens, the player may be exposed to career-ending or even life-threatening injuries. This is just not the way it should be and the present system deserves to be challenged.” In D’Arcy’s opinion, “these are serious issues that not only impact professional athletes, but ultimately trickle down to the thought process of our children playing sports who idolize these athletes and want to imitate their actions.”
Whether you know it or not, the present practice of sports medicine was put on trial in a jury trial of an ex-Philadelphia Flyer Dave Babych against the Team’s Doctor, which ended with a $1.37 Million Dollar Verdict for the player on October 31, 2002, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The limits of “winning at all costs” and the role of team doctors has received national attention as a result of this verdict. The lead trial lawyer on behalf of the ex-Flyer, Patrick T. D’Arcy, of the D’Arcy Law Firm in Galloway Township, N.J., is now offering his expert opinion why it is so important that professional athletes carefully evaluate their injuries before “playing through the pain” and why he was able to convince a jury in New Jersey that the present system needs to be changed.
When recently asked to comment on the issue, Mr. D’Arcy explained that “pro sports is a business, a big business, and winning usually translates into mega dollars for the owners of professional sports organizations. Combine that with the fact that professional athletes are generally very tough people and you have the potential for disaster when players are injured. The obvious problem is that sports team’s doctors are retained by the team and not the player. There often arises a clear conflict of interest between what will be best for the player and what will be best for the team. Unfortunately, at times, the team doctor decides to protect the interests of the team over the player, or more to the point, over the interests of his patient. When this happens, the player may be exposed to career-ending or even life-threatening injuries. This is just not the way it should be and the present system deserves to be challenged.” In D’Arcy’s opinion, “these are serious issues that not only impact professional athletes, but ultimately trickle down to the thought process of our children playing sports who idolize these athletes and want to imitate their actions.”