Dan Snyder has power to veto release of NFL's investigation into workplace misconduct
The NFL and the Washington Commanders signed a document agreeing that neither side would share information about the investigation into workplace misconduct unless both approved of it, according to a document released Friday by the House Committee on Oversight and Reform.
The "Common Interest Agreement" was signed by the NFL and team officials on July 16, 2020, days after the league took over the investigation into decades of sexual harassment and misconduct. The sides pledged a "joint legal strategy" so that privileged documents and information about the investigation could not be released without sign-offs from both sides.
That allowed Washington team owner Daniel Snyder, who is among those accused of misconduct, to veto a release of information, and vice versa for the league and commissioner Roger Goodell. In an open letter to Goodell on Friday, the committee chairs wrote new information "raises doubts about the NFL’s purported commitment to independence, transparency, and integrity in addressing workplace misconduct" in the organization.
The documents were released after the Congress held a roundtable on Thursday for former employees to detail their experiences. They are trying to have the league release evidence found in the investigation and set deadlines in the letter.
Washington OK'd written report, per document
The committee also released an "engagement letter" sent Aug. 3, 2020, from attorney Beth Wilkinson, who was hired to investigate as Wilkinson Walsh LLP, to William Rawson, general counsel for Washington. It detailed information and expectations regarding the investigation, much of which is redacted, and stipulated a written report under an updated "scope of work."
"As part of the investigation, [Wilkinson Walsh LLP] will complete a written report of its findings and make recommendations regarding any remedial measures You should take," according to the document.
Goodell did not require a written report from Wilkinson, an unusual move the league has not followed in past investigations. He said in October it was because the league is "very conscious of making sure that we're protecting those that came forward." Two attorneys representing many of the women who were interviewed in the investigation said the following day their clients wanted a public report.
"The Committee’s investigation and the NFL’s own legal documents raise serious doubts about this justification,” Committee chairs Carolyn B. Maloney and Raja Krishnamoorthi wrote in the letter to Goodell. “At a Committee roundtable yesterday, victims of sexual harassment and misconduct at the WFT also dismissed this excuse as unfounded, and urged the NFL to release the investigative findings.”
Also on Thursday, former employees of the organization detailed new allegations of misconduct on an episode of HBO's "Real Sports" podcast.
Congressional committee wants answers
Maloney could acquire the documents via subpoena as the chairwoman of the investigative arm of the House of Representatives, per the Washington Post.
The committee reiterated in its letter it wants the NFL to "end its months-long efforts to hide the truth" and cooperate with the investigation. It asked for an explanation as to why Snyder could block the release of the findings and why Wilkinson was instructed to not provide a written report.
The committee requires in its letter the league hand over the findings of the investigation, the 2,100 documents it says the NFL has in its hands, and any remaining documents held by a third party. The committee set a date of Feb. 14 and if the league does not comply, it "will consider alternate means of obtaining compliance."
