The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said it will not hear appeals from the NCAA or Ed O'Bannon on the long-running case between the parties about college athletes' rights.
The decision leaves in place the ruling handed down by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last year that upheld a district judge's 2014 determination that the NCAA's rules on athlete compensation violated antitrust law.
MORE: What O'Bannon ruling means
O'Bannon had appealed to have part of U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken's initial ruling — that football and men's basketball players could be paid up to $5,000 annually by schools — reinstated after it was overturned by the 9th Circuit. The NCAA hoped the entire case, which started seven years ago with O'Bannon suing over athletes' lack of compensation for use of their likenesses in video games, would be thrown out.
One key change already has sprung from Wilken's 2014 ruling. Beginning with the 2015-16 school year, schools were for the first time allowed to award athletic scholarships that covered the full cost of attendance, not just tuition.
By leaving intact the 9th Circuit ruling, the Supreme Court likely ensured that the NCAA's compensation rules will continue to face legal challenges. Among them: a lawsuit arguing that athletes should be paid market value for their services, which of course would soar past full cost of attendance in the major revenue sports.
The NCAA's chief legal officer, Donald Remy, released a statement that lamented the Supreme Court declining to "clarify key issues of law affecting the NCAA and other similar organizations," which speaks to the fluid nature of the legal framework surrounding the NCAA's amateurism principles. But Remy noted that it could have been worse for the organization.
"While we are disappointed with this decision not to review this case, we remain pleased that the Ninth Circuit agreed with us that amateurism is an essential component of college sports and that NCAA members should not be forced by the courts to provide benefits untethered to education, including providing any payments beyond the full cost of attendance."
