It occurs to me that many of us (myself included) are speculating on the possibility of the Wizards voiding Gilbert Arenas' contract without taking as much time as needed to study the actual language of the Uniform Player Contract, the NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement and several other key legal documents that might help us get a better idea. If this isn't your cup of tea, feel free to skip this thread, but I wanted to use it as a dumping point for people to post relevant legal language to help guide our discussion.
Below the jump, the relevant language from the Uniform Player Contract and the most recent Collective Bargaining Agreement. Feel free to add more key links so we can update this, and also feel free to speculate on what the language means. Also, if you have any documents and articles from cases you believe are good precedents for this one, please put those in the comments.
Uniform Player Contract, Section 5
(a) The Player agrees to observe and comply with all Team rules, as maintained or promulgated in accordance with the CBA, at all times whether on or off the playing floor. Subject to the provisions of the CBA, such rules shall be part of this Contract as fully as if herein written and shall be binding upon the Player.
(b) The Player agrees: (i) to give his best services, as well as his loyalty, to the Team, and to play basketball only for the Team and its assignees; (ii) to be neatly and fully attired in public; (iii) to conduct himself on and off the court according to the highest standards of honesty, citizenship, and sportsmanship; and (iv) not to do anything that is materially detrimental or materially prejudicial to the best interests of the Team or the League.
(c) For any violation of Team rules, any breach of any provision of this Contract, or for any conduct impairing the faithful and thorough discharge of the duties incumbent upon the Player, the Team may reasonably impose fines and/or suspensions on the Player in accordance with the terms of the CBA.
Uniform Player Contract, Section 16a
The Team may terminate this Contract upon written notice to the Player if the Player shall:
(i) at any time, fail, refuse, or neglect to conform his personal conduct to standards of good citizenship, good moral character (defined here to mean not engaging in acts of moral turpitude, whether or not such acts would constitute a crime), and good sportsmanship, to keep himself in first class physical condition, or to obey the Team's training rules;
(ii) at any time commit a significant and inexcusable physical attack against any official or employee of the Team or the NBA (other than another player), or any person in attendance at any NBA game or event, considering the totality of the circumstances, including (but not limited to) the degree of provocation (if any) that may have led to the attack, the nature and scope of the attack, the Player's state of mind at the time of the attack, and the extent of any injury resulting from the attack;
(iii) at any time, fail, in the sole opinion of the Team's management, to exhibit sufficient skill or competitive ability to qualify to continue as a member of the Team; provided, however, (A) that if this Contract is terminated by the Team, in accordance with the provisions of this subparagraph, prior to January 10 of any Season, and the Player, at the time of such termination, is unfit to play skilled basketball as the result of an injury resulting directly from his playing for the Team, the Player shall (subject to the provisions set forth in Exhibit 3) continue to receive his full Base Compensation, less all workers' compensation benefits (which, to the extent permitted by law, and if not deducted from the Player's Compensation by the Team, the Player hereby assigns to the Team) and any insurance provided for by the Team paid or payable to the Player by reason of said injury, until such time as the Player is fit to play skilled basketball, but not beyond the Season during which such termination occurred; and provided, further, (B) that if this Contract is terminated by the Team, in accordance with the provisions of this subparagraph, during the period from the January 10 of any Season through the end of such Season, the Player shall be entitled to receive his full Base Compensation for said Season; or
(iv) at any time, fail, refuse, or neglect to render his services hereunder or in any other manner materially breach this Contract.
NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement (finalized last in 2005), Article 6
Section 7. Unlawful Violence.
When a player is convicted of (including a plea of guilty, no contest, or nolo contendere to) a violent felony, he shall immediately be suspended by the NBA for a minimum of ten (10) games.
Section 9. Firearms.
(a) Whenever a player is physically present at a facility or venue owned, operated, or being used by a Team, the NBA, or any League-related entity, and whenever a player is traveling on any NBA-related business, whether on behalf of the player's Team, the NBA, or any League-related entity, such player shall not possess a firearm of any kind. For purposes of the foregoing, "a facility or venue" includes, but is not limited to: an arena; a practice facility; a Team or League office or facility; an All-Star or NBA Playoff venue; and the site of a promotional or charitable appearance.
(b) Any violation of Section 9(a) above shall be considered conduct prejudicial to the NBA under Article 35(d) of the NBA Constitution and By-Laws, and shall therefore subject the player to discipline by the NBA in accordance with such Article.
Section 10: One Penalty.
(a) The NBA and a Team shall not discipline a player for the same act or conduct. The NBA's disciplinary action will preclude or supersede disciplinary action by any Team for the same act or conduct.
(b) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in Section 10(a), (i) the same act or conduct by a player may result in both a termination of the player's Uniform Player Contract by his Team and the suspension of the player by the NBA if the egregious nature of the act or conduct is so lacking in justification as to warrant such double penalty, and (ii) both the NBA and the Team to which a player is traded may impose discipline for a player's failure to report for a trade in accordance with paragraph 10(d) of the Uniform Player Contract.