David S. Doty, Judge Who Helped Shape the Modern N.F.L., Dies at 96

David S. Doty, a federal judge who presided over a series of cases involving National Football League players that led to a landmark agreement in 1993 that ushered in free agency, a salary cap and revenue sharing, which shaped the modern N.F.L., died on June 27 in Edina, Minn. He was 96.

His death, in hospice care, was confirmed by his daughter, Laura Mary Doty. He had been living in Minneapolis, where he served on the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, and was still carrying a substantial caseload until February, when he fell while exercising.

For nearly two decades after the 1993 agreement, Judge Doty, a straight-talking, meticulous former Marine, oversaw the class-action settlement named after Reggie White, the star defensive end who had been the lead plaintiff for a group of players trying to win free agency.

During those years, the league sometimes chafed at Judge Doty’s supervision, preferring that disputes be resolved at the bargaining table. But he was considered fair-minded, even though he often ruled in the players’ favor and at times showed little patience for some of the owners’ positions. One former N.F.L. lawyer, Frank Hawkins, said in an interview that the players’ lawyer, Jeffrey Kessler, had a “home court advantage” in Judge Doty’s court.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/03/sports/football/david-s-doty-dead.html