The Washington Commanders’ corporate parent has cut a seven-figure check to the District, bringing a long-running Snyder-era headache a step closer to the rearview mirror.
Pro-Football LLC, which owns the Commanders, agreed Monday to pay $1 million to the District of Columbia to resolve consumer-protection claims that the franchise misled D.C. residents about an investigation into workplace misconduct under its prior ownership. D.C. Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb announced the settlement, which also requires the team to keep in place strengthened workplace policies and complaint procedures. The deal closes one of several consumer-focused probes tied to conduct at the club when Dan Snyder was in charge.
Settlement details
According to WJLA, Pro-Football LLC will pay $1 million to the District and continue with workplace reforms that have been rolled out since the team was sold last year. The station reports that the agreement resolves the District’s consumer-protection claims about how the team described and handled an investigation into workplace misconduct.
Origins of the lawsuit
The case traces back to a 2022 complaint in which the D.C. attorney general alleged that the Commanders and others hid findings about a toxic workplace that included allegations of sexual harassment and assault. In a November 2022 filing, the D.C. Office of the Attorney General said the team and the NFL entered secret agreements and interfered with what was supposed to be an independent probe into the franchise’s workplace culture, according to the D.C. Office of the Attorney General.
Sale and reforms under new ownership
Josh Harris's ownership group bought the team in July 2023 and has said it intends to overhaul operations and rebuild trust with fans. The sale, along with a subsequent league investigation that led to a large fine for former owner Dan Snyder, set up state and local enforcement actions and positioned the current owners to revamp human-resources and anti-harassment policies, according to The Washington Post.
Related consumer cases
The D.C. deal joins other recent consumer settlements tied to the franchise’s legacy practices. In 2023, the District secured refunds and penalties over unreturned season-ticket deposits, and in 2024 Virginia reached a $1.3 million settlement that returned money to affected fans, according to FOX Sports.
What the agreement requires
WJLA reports that the settlement requires the Commanders to pay the $1 million and to keep in place workplace policies and complaint-handling procedures that have been adopted since the ownership change, with the D.C. attorney general's office set to monitor compliance. The outlet notes that the money goes to the District and that the agreement ends the consumer-protection claims tied specifically to the team’s public statements about the misconduct investigation.
For fans and city officials, the deal lifts one legal cloud from the Snyder years, even as questions about transparency and accountability at the franchise remain part of the public record. The Washington Post has tracked the investigations and the sale that followed, including the D.C. office’s push to make investigatory findings public as part of broader accountability efforts.
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