The claims against him—four of which are still outstanding and up to six of which could potentially suit him following the Houston settlement—are unaffected. There are benefits and drawbacks to settling in Houston on a deeper level.
The good news is that Watson won't be called a witness in that litigation if/when the suits against the Texans get to trial. He might have testified under oath in a deposition before each test, and he indeed would have been asked to do so at every one of them.
Even if he had resolved every case against him by that point, he would have been subjected to brutal interrogation by attorney Tony Buzbee and perhaps the team's counsel, depending on the particular defense(s) created and presented to a jury. The team could have made an effort to demonstrate that Watson did nothing improper and that the team also did nothing wrong. Alternately, the team may have attempted to blame everything on Watson, claiming it was his responsibility to prevent misconduct.
Similarly, the settlement avoids a situation that would have been highly embarrassing.
Suppose the claims against the Texans had been filed directly against the team and not added to the existing instances (as the first one was presented). Texas sues Deshaun Watson may have been the headline. The Texans' settlements avoid this formal difficulty.
The bad news is that the settlements will be used to pay for the ongoing litigation in the four pending cases and the six prospective additional ones. Any money given to the women who are currently using Watson or going to sue him can be used to pay for the ongoing lawsuits against him, even though the amount is unknown and may never be. Additionally, it might give those who have rejected settlement offers greater confidence to stand their ground and demand a public trial.
On that issue, Watson and his attorneys may be entitled to learn the sums paid by the Texans within the parameters of the ongoing legal proceedings. The Texans and Buzbee would undoubtedly oppose any such attempt. Through his counsel, Watson might contend that the data is subject to the discovery procedure since it might be pertinent to the ongoing legal action. If the settlements are small, it can be argued that this indicates the cases were not strong. If the payments are substantial, Watson can attempt to obtain a credit equal to any judgment rendered against him. Again, any attempt to bring the settlement sums in open court would be fiercely resisted by the team and Buzbee.
It seems there was a justification for the Texans to pay more the more they pay. Despite being aware of Watson's alleged misbehavior, the Texans did nothing to end it. That Watson had broken the law.
Whatever the case, the situation, which was about to become utterly convoluted with up to 30 new lawsuits against the Texans, has been simplified. That's fantastic news for the NFL, in our opinion. This protracted diversion will cease once the last case against Watson is resolved.
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