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Oakland fans pursue last-ditch lawsuit to keep Raiders

Posted at 11:40 PM, Jan 23, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-24 12:00:46-05

Leaders of the "We Stand with Oakland" said lawyers have stepped up as the group pursues a suit to keep the Raiders from leaving the Bay Area.

The fan-led effort held a press conference before making their case to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors.

Many backing the legal efforts pointed to a recent decision by a Missouri judge to allow a case against the Los Angeles Rams to move forward.

In that case, several of the public entities in the St. Louis area filed suit against the team and NFL for breech of contract and other charges.

This after the Rams left St. Louis for a new stadium in Los Angeles.

"I am encouraged by the fact that a number of law firms have approached us," Alameda County Supervisor Nate Miley said in a story reported by KGO in San Francisco.

While the group says several unnamed attorneys have offered to help on the case, they would need the city or county to join in the effort, that is why they were speaking before the board of supervisors Tuesday.

The Oakland- Alameda County Coliseum Authority currently holds $83 million in outstanding bond debt on the Raiders current home from the 1996 remodel that brought the team back to Oakland from their stint in Los Angeles.

While the Raiders did not respond to KGO's request for comment on the current efforts, owner Mark Davis has repeatedly said the team remains committed to the Las Vegas move.

While they remain committed the team still has not finalized the lease agreements and non-relocation agreements that would prevent the Raiders from leaving Las Vegas without paying multi-million dollar penalties.

Those deals are expected to be completed and signed in February, with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority set to meet again Thursday to continue ironing out the final details.