Radawan v. UConn et al.

Radawan v. UConn et al. Mr. Tarone represents Noriana Radwan, a former University of Connecticut soccer player who has sued her alma mater, former Athletic Director Warde Manuel (now at the University of Michigan), women’s soccer Head Coach Len Tsantiris, and Director of Student Financial Aid Services Mona Lucas for breach of her grant-in-aid scholarship in violation of NCAA By-Laws, violation of Title IX and of her constitutional rights under the Civil Rights Act, as well as negligent infliction of emotional stress. Radwan v. UConn et al., Noriana’s case can be followed on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/norianasvoice/?ref=bookmarks. Here is the Inside Edition report on the day the case was filed, December 16, 2016. After the Defendants were granted summary judgment on June 6, 2020, and in 2021 the case was been appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and is currently awaiting oral argument and decision. The Connecticut attorney general’s office, which represented UConn in the appeal, said it was reviewing the ruling to determine its next move. Radwan raised her middle finger to an ESPNU camera while celebrating with teammates after the Huskies beat South Florida 3-2 on penalty kicks in the 2014 American Athletic Conference championship game. Coach Len Tsantiris initially suspended Radwan from the 2014 NCAA Tournament and issued a statement apologizing to the conference, South Florida and those who watched the game on television. Tsantiris retired after the 2017 season. In her lawsuit, Radwan alleged that after the publicity died down, she was stripped of her scholarship midway through the school year without due process for what the coach described as “serious misconduct.” She eventually transferred to Hofstra. Greg Tarone, her attorney, argued that although Radwan’s offense was regrettable, it was protected speech that did not rise to the level of “serious misconduct.” He also argued that the punishment was much harsher than what male athletes at the school had received for more serious offenses, including arrests.