Father of Steve Montador files second lawsuit in son's death

Paul Montador's six-year legal battle against the NHL over the death of his son Steve Montador has taken another turn after he filed a second lawsuit against the NHL recently.

It's been 10 months since a judge dismissed the first lawsuit filed in Montador's death. The ruling at that time said that some claims made by Paul were preempted by the NHL's collective labour agreement with the NHLPA, which directs players with medical-related grievances to pursue private arbitration. However, the judge allowed Paul to proceed in state court to pursue negligence claims against the NHL that allege the league has unreasonably promoted a culture of violence, and led Steve to believe that the repeated brain trauma he suffered was not dangerous.

In his new claim, Paul says his son Steve suffered "thousands of sub-concussive brain traumas and multiple concussions, many of which were undiagnosed and/or undocumented."

"The NHL, armed with vastly superior managerial, medical, legal, and other resources to gather, analyze, and understand sub-concussion, concussion and head injury data, failed to keep Steven Montador reasonably safe during his career and misled him on the permanent ramifications of brain trauma," says the lawsuit.

Steve Montador played for 10 seasons in the NHL with six different teams, getting involved in some documented 69 fights throughout his career. He had a well-documented history of concussions, depression, memory problems and erratic behaviour.

"In 2007, during Steven Montador's sixth year in the league, the NHL was queried on the juxtaposition of 'knocked out' boxers sitting out from further fights for 60-90 days, while the NHL Enforcers/Fighters, even when knocked out, can come back into the game almost immediately. The NHL thought this was a good question, but did nothing to act on the provocative reality," said the new lawsuit.

The NHL has yet to file a response to the lawsuit. However, in the previous one, it stated that Steve's injuries were "caused, in whole or in part, by [Montador's] own lack of due care and fault, and/or by pre-existing conditions; and/or the lack of due care of others for whom the NHL has no responsibility or control." Following his death, Montador was diagnosed with CTE from repeated concussions.

Source: TSN.ca

MUST READ

Feb 28  |  By Tom Banks Vancouver Canucks' Contract Offer to Brock Boeser Leaks Publicly

Feb 28  |  By Tom Banks Montreal Canadiens Star Undergoes Season-Ending Knee Surgery

Feb 28  |  By Daniel Lucente Philadelphia Flyers Officially Looking to Trade Former 39-Goal Scorer

Feb 28  |  By Daniel Lucente Evander Kane May Be in His Final Days in Edmonton After Friedman Reveals New Information

Feb 28  |  By Mike Whitaker Maple Leafs Forward Pulls Back Trade Request

Feb 27  |  By Mike Whitaker Brad Marchand Goes Viral for Passionate Video Ahead of Four Nations Faceoff Final

Feb 27  |  By Mike Whitaker David Pastrnak's Latest Comments Suggest Bruins Will Be Big Sellers at the Deadline

Feb 27  |  By Julien Trekker 6-Foot-6 Winger Linked to the New York Rangers at the Trade Deadline

MORE STORIES