Legends (lingerie) Football League defaults in Vegas lawsuit

A default has been entered against the Legends Football League, formerly the Lingerie Football League, in the class-action lawsuit filed by a former Las Vegas Sin player.

Robin Johnson, who lives in Las Vegas, filed the lawsuit in August in federal court. It accuses the league of failing to pay the required minimum wage and overtime to hundreds of employees.

The lawsuit claims the professional football league and Mitchell Mortaza, its owner and founder, wrongfully have classified Johnson “and hundreds of similarly situated employees” as independent contractors who are exempt from minimum wage and overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

According to the default, the defendants were served with summonses but have “failed to plead or otherwise defend” the case.

California attorney Pejman Ben-Cohen, who represents Johnson, accused Mortaza of “evading responsibility.”

“There’s still games going on all across the country, and he’s refusing to accept responsibility for the manner in which he has misclassified the players — the same players that have led to his success,” Ben-Cohen said.

According to the league’s website, the Las Vegas Sin faces the Los Angeles Temptation at 8 p.m. today in Los Angeles.

A phone number for the league was not in service Friday, and an email from the Las Vegas Review-Journal did not receive a response.

“The next step is: We’re going to obtain a judgment, and we’re going to start collecting on it,” Ben-Cohen said.

Johnson played for the Las Vegas Sin from September 2011 to September 2013.

According to her lawsuit, the league began as a halftime show during the Super Bowl and has grown into a 10-team league in the United States, a five-team league in Australia, and a four-team league in Canada. It features female players who wear little clothing.

Contact reporter Carri Geer Thevenot at cgeer@reviewjournal.com or 702-384-8710. Find her on Twitter: @CarriGeer