Metzloff: Duke Should Consider Case in Context

Duke law professor Thomas Metzloff said he hopes university officials will take time to consider the jury's decision in the federal lawsuit brought by place kicker Heather Sue Mercer before moving ahead with an appeal.

Metzloff, who specializes in dispute resolution and legal ethics, followed the case by reading newspaper accounts of the trial.

He said he believes the $2 million verdict awarded Mercer will be reduced on appeal, but thinks Duke should still consider settling with Mercer.

"We at Duke should stop a minute and think about this," Metzloff said this week. "Like we do at the law school with other legal cases, we should explore what was at stake, and explore the opposing sides. We may disagree with the jury at the end of the day, but we should listen and reflect.

"It seems that Duke never stopped and said what's going on here, let's deal with it. There was still time in the last couple years to say, 'Hey, this didn't go right, and we're sorry,'" Metzloff said.

Metzloff said that he would rather have Duke known for such facts as the law school being ranked No. 1 as a great place for women to study than the publicity generated by the Mercer case.

"Sometimes the merits of a case have to be considered in a broader context," he said.