Posted on behalf of Chris Psihoules
Michael McAnn, of Sports Illustrated, penned a very interesting article about the potential legal consequences facing Bryan Colangelo, the former Philadelphia 76ers General Manager, who resigned this past week amidst a Twitter scandal. Colangelo resigned in the wake of his wife, Barbara Bottini, admitting to creating burner Twitter accounts and using them in an attempt to influence fans around the League. I’m not sure if “burner” has a true definition, but the online Merriam-Webster dictionary says it “serves to refer to something that is disposable, or that cannot be traced.”
McAnn detailed the investigation of the law firm Paul Weiss, whom the 76ers retained to investigate ties between the accounts and Colangelo. The conclusion, “Bottini authored the tweets and [] Colangelo was ‘careless and in some instances reckless’ in how he safeguarded confidential team information.”
McAnn’s article points out that while Colangelo’s resignation will allow him to avoid legal ramifications with the team, he remains in hot water. Any player targeted by Bottini could explore a defamation claim against Bottini and Colangelo. Tweets targeting player health may also come under fired. The Department of Health and Human Services could raise a claim that Colangelo was in violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which prohibits certain healthcare and human resource professionals from disclosing medical information without patient consent.
The article goes on to analyze League punishments for Colangelo and the 76ers. McAnn notes that spousal privilege, a tactic often used in lawsuits to offer defendants a degree of legal protection, is not relevant in the context of a League investigation. However you look at the burner accounts and subsequent resignation, what is clear from McAnn’s article is that Colangelo faces an uphill battle to avoid legal punishment.
Find Michael McAnn’s entire, and much more eloquently written article,
here.