Weighing in on the wide world of sports and law

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Cleaning out the legal briefcase of the mind on what’s been a busy stretch in the world of sports and the law …

It’s been uncomfortably quiet on the Bobby Valentine front since the Red Sox gave the never-media-shy ex-skipper his walking papers on Oct. 4.

I’ve talked to a bunch of employment lawyers who say that’s no accident.

Apparently, it’s not outside the realm of possibility that the Sox would buy Bobby V’s silence. A few Fenway Franks may have been exchanged for a promise that he not trash team ownership or tell us where the bodies are buried on the disastrous 2012 season.

“Non-disparagement clauses are common in this kind of setting,” says Boston lawyer David Wilson of Hirsch, Roberts, Weinstein. “There are a million reasons why the Sox would look to make it worth Valentine’s while to remain silent about his year in Boston. And the law certainly recognizes such clauses as permissible.” …

Don’t cry for Bobby V. October wasn’t all bad.

The same week Valentine was told to collect his stuff from Yawkey Way, U.S. District Court Judge Rya Zobel dismissed an off-the-wall TRO request from a Bronx man who identified himself as “Jonathan Francona.” The plaintiff, who claimed to be former Red Sox manager Terry Francona’s nephew, accused Valentine of assaulting him at the Bleacher Bar following a June 5 loss to the Orioles.

There are no media or police accounts of the alleged incident, nor are there any public records indicating that a man named Jonathan Francona has ever lived in New York.

Zobel tossed the suit, which was never served on Valentine, because the accusations failed to make out a federal claim.

Gotta love the pro ses. I’m sure a 1st Circuit appeal is imminent. …

Speaking of the Sox, two ex-staffers recently came forward with accusations that a now-deceased clubhouse manager sexually molested them many moons ago.

Donald Fitzpatrick pleaded guilty to attempted sexual battery in Florida in 2002. The team quickly settled a civil suit with seven of his victims the following year.

Now, veteran plaintiffs’ counsel Mitchell Garabedian wants ownership to pay his clients $5 million.

The problem for Garabedian is that the statute of limitations has long passed.

Although Sox lawyers from Bingham McCutchen say they’re considering Garabedian’s request, what attorney in his right mind would advise a client to open a checkbook under the circumstances?

The Sox rely on their good name to sell tickets and may feel a moral obligation to do the “right thing.” But the evidence is clear that current ownership had nothing to do with the team when this predator’s criminal conduct occurred.

My money says no money will ever exchange hands. …

Note to self: Avoid being named as a defendant by the Patriots. Ever.

I recently wrote a story about a wrongful death case against team owner Robert Kraft, who’s accused of sticking his head in the sand about underage drinking at his stadium’s parking lot.

One thing that didn’t make its way into the article was what it’s like to square off against Sir Kraft in a lawsuit. The head man of the Patriots takes as hard a line stance in the courtroom as his defensive line did with the Rams in London.

Joseph Borsellino, who represents the plaintiff in the wrongful death suit, says Kraft objects to everything.

“If you certify public records, he demands that anyone who had anything to do with the creation of the record sign off on it,” Borsellino says. “He objects to certification of his own records and moves for dismissal if your caption is incorrectly laid out.”

Borsellino complains that Kraft has cost him “tens of thousands of dollars dealing with completely ridiculous stuff. I’d heard about their reputation for being tough in litigation, but I have to tell you I’ve never seen anything like this before in my 25 years.”

For the record, Borsellino’s remarks about Kraft are consistent with those of a number of lawyers I’ve chatted with over the years. …

Lost in the obituaries of U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, who lost a battle with cancer on Oct. 14, was the role he played in Spygate

It was the Republican leader from Pennsylvania who called for a congressional investigation into the Patriots’ illegal videotaping of opponents’ sidelines in 2005.

R.I.P. Sen. Specter. …

Not that long ago, Mike Zarren was a 3L at Harvard Law School.

Today, he’s assistant GM and team counsel of the 17-time champion Boston Celtics.

Though he’s hardly a household name, he has made a meteoric rise through NBA ranks by applying a Moneyball number-crunching approach to basketball stats. Kevin Garnett calls him “Numbers.” Paul Pierce has nicknamed him “MIT.”

When the Philadelphia 76ers tried to woo the 36-year-old into taking over as the team’s new GM this summer, Zarren told them he had no interest in leaving his post with Doc Rivers and Danny Ainge.

It’s an impressive resume for a lawyer who, had he followed a more traditional path out of Cambridge, would be toiling away in obscurity at a law firm today, summarizing deposition transcripts and responding to interrogatories.

But good luck getting Zarren to talk about the way things turned out for him. The guy’s in permanent lock-down mode.

My most recent interview request marked the seventh time the team’s front office has swatted me away like a back-up point guard driving the paint against KG.

On those rare occasions when the lifelong season-ticketholder has opened up at speaking engagements, he’s discussed the significance of dribbling data, rebounding stats and catch-and-shoot numbers. He’s also shed some light on the unique way he watches basketball: with a six-camera film program called “Sportsview” that somehow helps measure a player’s speed, distance and conditioning.

Not bad for a guy who started his tenure with the Celtics as an unpaid intern. …

What do former World Welterweight champion Tony DeMarco and lawyers have to do with each other? Quite a bit, it turns out.

Father-son attorneys Francis and Phil Privitera put their pennies together and commissioned the creation of a DeMarco statue, which was recently unveiled in Boston’s North End.

“My dad and Tony grew up together in Boston,” Phil says. “People have been trying to make a statue for Tony for a number of years. When they approached us with the opportunity of being the sponsors, it was a no-brainer.”