WADA asks sports court to open Russia case to public hearing

Featured Legal News

The World Anti-Doping Agency wants a rare public hearing for sport’s highest court to judge a four-year slate of punishments faced by Russia for persistent cheating.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport is preparing a hearing expected within weeks for the blockbuster case in Switzerland.

“It is WADA’s view — and that of many of our stakeholders — that this dispute at CAS should be held in a public forum to ensure that everybody understands the process and hears the arguments,” the Montreal-based agency’s director general, Olivier Niggli, said in a statement.

Urged on by President Vladimir Putin, Russia’s anti-doping agency, known as RUSADA, is formally challenging a WADA ruling in December to declare it non-compliant after key data from the Moscow testing laboratory was corrupted.

The CAS panel of three judges will have power to enforce WADA-recommended sanctions including a ban on Russia’s team name, flag and anthem at Olympic Games and world championships.

WADA also wants Russian athletes to compete as neutrals at the Olympics and major events only if they pass a vetting process which examines their history of drug testing and possible involvement in lab cover-ups of positive tests.

CAS hearings can be opened to media and public observers in some cases when both parties consent.

The court held its first public hearing for 20 years in November when WADA appealed a ruling by swimming’s world body not to ban China’s three-time Olympic gold medalist Sun Yang for alleged doping rule violations.

Related listings

  • Court takes another look at Native American adoption law

    Court takes another look at Native American adoption law

    Featured Legal News 01/23/2020

    A 1978 law giving preference to Native American families in foster care and adoption proceedings involving American Indian children was getting a second look Wednesday from a federal appeals court in New Orleans.A three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit...

  • Top Arizona court rules frozen embryos in breakup must be donated

    Top Arizona court rules frozen embryos in breakup must be donated

    Featured Legal News 01/23/2020

    The Arizona Supreme Court released a decision Thursday in a case that determined if a woman can use her frozen embryos to have a baby even if her ex-husband disagrees.A trial court had ruled against Torres, saying the contract she and her then-boyfri...

  • Court: Washington drivers must use turn signals to turn

    Court: Washington drivers must use turn signals to turn

    Featured Legal News 12/29/2019

    The state Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that drivers must use their signal every time they turn or change lanes on a roadway.Thursday’s ruling reverses a Court of Appeals ruling that said a signal is required only when public safety is af...

CHICAGO BUSINESS & CORPORATE LITIGATION LAWYERS

When faced with a legal challenge, your attorneys should help you identify your goals at the beginning of the process. Thereafter, every action that follows must be undertaken with the aim of meeting those goals. Wasted effort equals wasted time and money, that’s something you cannot afford and your attorneys must respect this concept. At Roth Law Group, we counsel our clients to confront their legal challenges aggressively, but with purpose.

As a former Marine Corps Pilot, I learned that you must assess the situation, determine your mission, construct a plan to achieve the mission and execute that plan. As an attorney and small business owner, I apply the same concepts in taking on my client’s legal challenges. And while it is generally preferable to resolve cases early in the process whenever possible, if you have no choice but to fight, you need someone who is willing to aggressively advocate for you. Here at Roth Law Group, we never back down from a challenge and we fight to win. Let our experienced attorneys put you in control of your legal challenges so you can get back to running your business.