Newman boys basketball coach Randy Livingston has been granted a court order letting him return to the team bench as soon as Saturday.
The Louisiana High School Athletics Association had suspended Livingston for a year, for allegedly violating rules on player recruiting. But Livingston said in a lawsuit filed Thursday he was denied due process, specifically a hearing on the allegations before a decision was made to suspend him.
An Orleans Parish Civil District Court judge on Friday issued a temporaray restraining order against the LHSAA, allowing Livington back on the basketball court until a court hearing Jan. 18. On that date, the LHSAA will be asked to explain why the temporary order should not continue.
The court order also put on hold the LHSAA's decision that Newman must forfeit three seasons worth of basketball wins and that barred Newman from the state playoffs this season. The Uptown New Orleans private school has won state championships in each of the past two seasons and could win a third in a row in the current season.
The court initially called for the Jan. 18 hearing to give Livingston a chance to argue why he should return to the bench. Now, however, Livingston has been given the OK to coach at least until the hearing.