HAMILTON export and premiership Bulldog, Liam Picken is just one of many former AFL players taking legal action against the AFL for negligence relating to concussion.

Picken played 198 games for the Western Bulldogs and retired in 2019 from debilitating ongoing concussion symptoms.

Picken’s lawyer, Tim Tobin SC said at Victoria’s Supreme Court last Wednesday that his two clients didn’t want to be part of a potential large group case, but instead wanted their cases to be dealt with individually.

Mr Tobin said Picken would be seeking medical records and concussion test documents from the Western Bulldogs and two doctors.

“He underwent a number of tests and those tests he failed, and they continued to play him after the failure of those tests,” Tobin said.

The Victorian court is currently trying to manage five separate civil cases involving former players suing the AFL around concussion.

The court will likely combine some of the lawsuits together with overlapping claims, the decision is around which cases will be combined and what law firm will get to run the class action.

Two different class action lawsuits have been filed by separate law firms; the successful firm could potentially represent hundreds of former players.

Casterton export, Max Rooke is also at the forefront of the concussion lawsuits as lead plaintiff of his class action, represented by Margalit Injury Lawyers.

Rooke allegedly suffered 20-30 concussions during his time with the Geelong Cats, he finished his career in 2010 having played 135 games.

Rooke was a dual premiership player for the Cats tasting the ultimate success in 2007 and 2009, in the time since he finished up at AFL level, he has been a regular visitor to his town of Casterton giving back to the community.

Details around the class action are set to made clearer as time goes on with pre-trial issues expected to until as late as November, the case will return to the supreme court at a later date.