Law360: CK Victory for Minor League Baseball

Judge Throws Out Minor League Owners’ Suit Against Rival

January 23, 2025

A New Jersey federal judge dismissed a suit brought against a minor league baseball team owner by a rival company over his alleged moves to undermine its position in financial negotiations with Major League Baseball, ruling that the owner had no duty to his rival during those talks.

U.S. District Judge Jamel K. Semper dismissed Sports Enterprises Inc.’s second amended complaint against Marvin Goldklang on Wednesday after concluding that the company’s sole claim against Goldklang for breach of fiduciary duty failed to show he had any such duty to breach. The suit alleged that Goldklang, who is a majority owner in multiple minor league baseball teams, undercut Sports Enterprises’ team the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes during negotiations with the MLB that ultimately led to the Volcanoes and other minor league teams losing their affiliate status and having to go independent.

Goldklang’s own teams did not lose their affiliation, and the suit alleged Goldklang purposely sold out teams like the Volcanoes for his own benefit while he was serving with the National Association, a group that oversaw the minor leagues before the MLB took direct control at the end of the negotiations at issue.

In his opinion, Judge Semper said that “none of the facts that plaintiff alleged about the nature of the relationship between Goldklang and SEI specifically demonstrates a special relationship of trust or confidence that would give rise to a fiduciary duty.”

Sports Enterprises is represented by Mohammad B. Pathan of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP and Alexander M. Naito of Tarlow Naito & Summers LLP.

Goldklang is represented by Eric T. Kanefsky, Kevin J. Musiakiewicz and Martin B. Gandelman of Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP and Christopher J. Gramiccioni of Kingston Coventry LLC.

The case is Sports Enterprises, Inc. v. Goldklang et al., case number 2:23-cv-02198, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

By Ryan Haroff

–Additional reporting by David Steele. Editing by Emily Kokoll.

Article source here: Law360