Florida Judge Rejects Disney’s Bid To Dismiss The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District’s Lawsuit
A Florida Judge on Friday rejected The Walt Disney Company’s request to dismiss a lawsuit by The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD) against the company.
The crux of the lawsuit revolves around last minute binding agreements that Disney made with the Reedy Creek Improvement District. Those agreements essentially gave Disney control over the land in-and-around Walt Disney World in perpetuity.
Reedy Creek
While Disney says that the agreements were perfectly legal, DeSantis and CFTOD have sought to void the deals.
Outside of their lawsuit, the state passed a law that retroactively voided the agreements.
Photo:newsbreak.com
Disney’s Argument To Dismiss
In their motion to dismiss, Disney argued that the course case is no longer necessary as the company’s agreements with Reedy Creek were nullified by the state.
Photo: Greg Angel/Spectrum News 13
Instead, Disney wanted to shift the focus to the federal case, where it argues that DeSantis and the CFTOD have violated the company’s First Amendment rights.
The CFTOD’s Argument
For their part, the CFTOD’s legal team has argued that the district’s case should proceed, as it differs from the broad-ranging federal case. Instead, the state case focuses specifically on the agreements between Reedy Creek and Disney.
“If Disney’s contracts are void, nearly all of Disney’s claims in the federal case disappear,” the district said in a court filing.
Disney Confident They Will Prevail
In her ruling, Judge Margaret H Schreiber ruled that the case was not moot.
“Because the case is not moot and a stay is not proper, the Court hereby denies Disney’s motion to Dismiss or, in the Alternative, to Stay this Action.” she concluded.
Photo: Ninth Judicial Court
While the judge rejected Disney’s motion to dismiss the CFTOD’s state case today, the company insists that the ruling will have no bearing on their pending federal lawsuit.
In that case, Disney is arguing that Florida Ron DeSantis’ decision to dissolve Reedy Creek was done made in retaliation for Disney publicly criticizing Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, which critics have dubbed “don’t say gay”.
Photo: Maria Tamo also Getty Images
“We are fully confident Disney will prevail in both the federal and state cases,” the spokesperson said in an email.
As always, be sure to check back in with MickeyBlog. We will continue to bring you updates on all of the news surrounding Ron DeSantis and The Walt Disney Company.
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