Wanderlei Silva files lawsuit against Nevada State Athletic Commission

There's been another twist in the tale of Wanderlei Silva versus the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Having previously been banned for life by the NSAC, as well as fined $70,000 for effectively evading a random drug test for his bout against Chael Sonnen, Silva has filed a lawsuit against the NSAC. Wanderlei's attorney, Ross Goodman, explained the basis of the suit: (Via MMAFighting)

"The NSAC, like any other agency, is a 'creature' of statue and attempts to expand jurisdiction over subject matter not conferred by the legislature is without authority of the law and void. Here, the legislature clearly defined the NSAC's powers to 'issuing and revoking licenses.' Contrary to the wrongful action against [Silva], there exists no statutory authority, nor does the NSAC point to any, which allows it to expand its limited jurisdiction to include disciplining people who are not licensed by the agency," the lawsuit reads, as filed by Silva attorney Ross Goodman.

The lawsuit also alleges the $70,000 fine was made arbitrarily, and that "The retaliatory nature by the NSAC of imposing a career ending sanction based on a first offense is by nature arbitrary and capricious," per the complaint. One of the biggest sticking points is the belief that the commission has handed out weaker punishments to repeat offenders who have "actual drug test violations", which may indirectly refer to Vitor Belfort and Chael Sonnen.

Below is the official complaint with full details on this lawsuit. Bloody Elbow will provide more coverage of the story as it develops.

A-14-710453-J-6563731 MPA Petitioner s Memorandum of Points and Authorities