In the weeks after the tackle which left McKinnon paralysed in the early rounds of the 2014 season, then NRL head of football Todd Greenberg resisted pressure to abolish lifting tackles.

Instead the NRL publicly claimed there would be a crackdown on the tackling technique from the match review committee and that "players need to be aware that the onus of responsibility is on them" or risk beefed up sanctions.

"Lifting tackles in the game are here to stay," Greenberg said in April 2014. "There are lots of lifting tackles in the game that are clearly safe. It is important to stress that the rules have not changed… rather the way in which they are to be applied has been re-emphasised with the match review committee."

As McKinnon prepares to launch a lawsuit against the NRL and Melbourne prop Jordan McLean for damages to cover the costs of living in a wheelchair for the rest of his life, a leading Sydney sports lawyer said League Central's decision not to prohibit lifting tackles would be scrutinised.

"It's clear Mr Greenberg seemed to be aware of the issue because he was very careful to say we're not going to change a rule, but just enforce the rule [more stringently]," lawyer John de Mestre said. "It will be open to a court to interpret whether something like that should have been done earlier or not.

"There's no winners and this is difficult for both sides. It's difficult not to feel sorry for Alex and it's also difficult for the NRL."

Jarrod McCracken's case against former Storm players Stephen Kearney and Marcus Bai earned him damages after a judge ruled they had intended to injure the ball carrier, although not as seriously as occurred when the then Tiger's career ended due to a neck injury shortly after.

McKinnon's legal team will argue McLean, who was banned for seven matches after the incident, employed illegal tactics when making the tackle which led to the tragic injury.

But a governing body has not been the subject of litigation from a professional rugby league player, although Country Rugby League was pursued for damages by a schoolboy player who fractured his spine while playing packing down into a scrum in a match on NSW's mid north coast in 1994.

"There was also a case in 2000 where the court in fact determined sporting administrators do owe a duty of care to participants in a sport in the formulation of the rules in their respective games, but hadn't breached it in that particular case," de Mestre said.

"But this case might be different and groundbreaking because it's a professional sportsperson."

The NRL has previously promised McKinnon a "job for life" in rugby league after raising more than $1.5 million in Rise For Alex fundraisers, but that is only a tiny fraction of his living costs for the rest of his life. McKinnon now works as an employee at the Knights.

The Rugby League Players Association acknowledged McKinnon needed to take whatever measure necessary for his future.

"Alex has the right to pursue any and all legal options available to him in relation to his injury and it is appropriate that he has engaged his own legal representatives to assist him," it said in a statement.

"We also recognise there has been an emotional toll on those who played and officiated in the game between the Newcastle Knights and Melbourne Storm and particularly on those involved in the incident that resulted in the injury to Alex.

"From the RLPA's perspective we will seek to ensure that the rights of all parties are protected throughout any legal process that might eventuate."

The Melbourne Storm declined to comment on Monday.