13. Litigation

13. Litigation

 

Section 1. No Organization Member, member of an Organization Member, official, league, club, team, player, coach, administrator or referee may invoke the aid of the courts in the United States or of any State if any potential remedy is or was available through any hearing, appeal, or grievances process of any Organization Member or the Federation. This Bylaw does not apply to the commencement of an arbitration proceeding under these Bylaws, the USOC bylaws or court action taken to enforce a decision of the Federation, USOC, CAS, or FIFA.

 

Section 2. For a violation of this Bylaw, the offending party shall be subject to suspension and fines, and shall be liable to the Federation or the responding party for all expenses incurred by the Federation or the responding party and their officers in defending each court action, including but not limited to the following:

(1) court costs

(2) attorneys’ fees

(3) reasonable compensation for time spent by officials and employees in defending the action, including the preparation of responses to discovery and court appearances

(4) travel expenses, and

(5) expenses for holding special meetings necessitated by the court action.