The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Texas, accuses the NFL’s appeal process of being “fundamentally unfair” because arbitrator Harold Henderson denied a request to have his ex-girlfriend, Tiffany Thompson, testify at an appeal hearing that wrapped up earlier Thursday.
The suit also claimed NFL executives hid information that was favorable to Elliott before Commissioner Roger Goodell imposed the punishment on Aug. 11.
The lawsuit accused NFL lawyer Lisa Friel of withholding from Goodell the word of co-lead investigator Kia Roberts, who the suit said concluded the accuser was not credible and discipline was not warranted.
Roberts testified she was the only NFL staffer that interviewed Thompson while investigating the accusations. Roberts said Thompson “was not credible in her allegations of abuse,” according to ESPN. Roberts also said discipline for Elliott was not warranted.
“The withholding of this critical information from the disciplinary process was a momentous denial of the fundamental fairness required in every arbitration and, of course, does not satisfy federal labor law’s minimal due process requirements,” the lawsuit said.
Henderson was supposed to rule on the NFL’s decision to suspend “as soon as practicable,” according to the labor agreement.
Elliott, the NFL’s 2016 rushing leader as a rookie, was suspended after the league concluded he used physical force last summer in Ohio against Thompson, his girlfriend at the time. Prosecutors did not pursue the case, citing conflicting evidence.
Elliott denied the allegations under oath in the appeal bearing, according to the lawsuit.