Cardinals "strongly deny" the allegations from the new lawsuit against the team and owner Michael Bidwill

On Thursday, the former personal assistant of Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill filed a wrongful discharge lawsuit against Bidwill and the team.

The Cardinals have issued a statement in response to the complaint filed by Brittany Neuheisel.

"Earlier this week, the Cardinals received an email from a California-based plaintiff’s lawyer.

"In it, he threatened to file a lawsuit unless the team agreed to his demand for a substantial amount of money by 5:00PM the next day.

"The team refused and the lawyer has now filed the Complaint.

"The Cardinals were surprised by and strongly deny the allegations made in this lawsuit and intend to defend the case on its merits in the appropriate forum.

"As this is now pending litigation, the team will refrain from further comment."

Once the lawsuit and associated paperwork is officially served, the Cardinals will be required to respond. Their options include filing a motion to dismiss the case, removing it from Arizona state court to Arizona federal court, and/or answering the allegations in the complaint.

Like most civil actions, the case will play out over a period of months if not years.