Raiders Lawsuit Finally Ends

After more than two decades, Al Davis' suit against the NFL is over.

The Oakland Raiders lost their case in highest court in the state of California after contending in a lawsuit that the National Football League sabotaged the team's effort to build a stadium at Hollywood Park in Los Angeles.

The case dates back more than 20 years, when Davis accused the league of purposely not doing enough to help the team move from the antiquated Memorial Coliseum to a new stadium complete with revenue-generating luxury suites.

The Raiders returned to Oakland in 1995 after spending 13 years in Los Angeles.

The NFL won a 9-3 verdict in 2001, but Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Richard Hubbell ordered a new trial amid accusations that one juror was biased against the team and Davis, and that another juror committed misconduct.

A state appeals court overturned that decision, and the California Supreme Court unanimously ruled the verdict against the Raiders stands.

The ruling was the last of several lawsuits the Raiders had outstanding against the league and its stadium landlords.

In November, the Raiders and the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority ended a decade of legal acrimony by dropping existing lawsuits and ending the seat-licensing plan known as personal seat licenses or "PSLs."

Now the Raiders will try to put this behind them and rebuild the product on the field. Last season, Oakland finished 3-13, the worst record in franchise history.