Hon. Judge Robert A. Richardson 1/24/17: “All right. Lastly, I guess the only other item that I think I would address while we’re all here is whether you guys have any interest in talking settlement with a magistrate judge…. But I throw it out there in the event that both parties have any interest in discussing settlement with a magistrate judge. We have magistrate judges who are here and very able and very capable. It sounds like this litigation has been going on for a while, since 2015. It sounds like it’s going to continue to go on at least for a while longer, depending on how motions get resolved; but I would encourage you that it’s never a bad idea to talk settlement with a third party. It doesn’t mean that anyone is surrendering on any position, but it gives you at least a third party’s view of things, and maybe helps you get the case resolved alot faster and more efficiently.” See Full Minutes here, basically the discussion was about trying to get a schedule for the lawsuit (called a 26f report).
10/16/16 the WWE wrote in its Motion for Sanctions DK 229 page 3 “WWE has previously advised Plaintiff’s Counsel that it is not interested in settlement… Plaintiffs Counsel submitted a proposed Rule 26(f) report in this case requesting an early settlement conference.” This appears as a footnote to the WWE’s claims the plaintiffs lawyers “are attempting to extort a settlement.”
Needless to say I think that the WWE legal team is committed to continuing its defensive line of scorched earth tactics, and not discussing trying to help the wrestlers with medical care despite the fact that four plaintiffs have already died this year- the latest with the passing of Ron Bass on March 7, 2017.