A federal judge in Florida has thrown out a lawsuit by Disney challenges Florida governor Ron DeSantis and other state authorities over the state’s move to change the governance of the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
Disney challenges Florida governor and state officials in court
Disney challenges Florida governor claimed in the lawsuit, filed in April last year, that the state’s action was a reprisal for Disney’s opposition to the Parental Rights in Education Act, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by critics.
The state legislature passed a bill to replace the former district board, mostly controlled by Disney as the main landowner, with a new Central Florida Tourism Oversight District appointed by DeSantis. The lawsuit said the new board cancelled a contract that was made before it took over.
Disney challenges Florida governor’s retaliation for “Don’t Say Gay” bill criticism
Disney and DeSantis have conflicted since Disney publicly denounced a controversial Florida law backed by DeSantis that limits what can be taught about sexual orientation and gender identity in grades K-3.
Disney said the law was discriminatory and should have never been enacted or signed.
Disney challenges the Florida governor’s press secretary’s statement, saying, “The Corporate Kingdom is not over.”
DeSantis’ press secretary, Jeremy Redfern, praised the ruling in a statement on Wednesday.
“Governor DeSantis said it when he signed HB 9-B, the Corporate Kingdom is over,” Redfern said. “Disney can no longer run its government and be above the law. The federal court’s decision confirmed that Governor DeSantis was right: Disney is just another corporation in the state, and they have no right to their special government. In short — as expected, case dismissed.”
Disney challenges Florida governor’s legal victory, vows to continue the fight
DeSantis and J. Alex Kelly, the secretary of Florida’s Department of Commerce, defended themselves by citing a lack of standing and 11th Amendment immunity, which the judge agreed with, while the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District said the case had no merit.
“The clerk will enter a judgment that says, ‘This case was resolved on motions to dismiss. ‘ The plaintiff’s claims against the Governor and the Department Secretary are dismissed without prejudice for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The plaintiff’s claims against the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board members are dismissed on the merits of failure to state a claim,” U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor, appointed by then-President Donald Trump in 2018, wrote in his final decision.
Winsor wrote that Disney did not prove standing to sue the governor or secretary.
“The analysis could be different if the Governor had not yet made any appointments,” Winsor wrote. “But as things stand, if this court enjoined future appointments, Disney would face the same situation now: it would be operating under the CFTOD board, over which it has no control. Stopping hypothetical future appointments would not redress any alleged imminent harm.”
“This is an important case with serious implications for the rule of law, and it will not end here,” a Disney spokesperson said. “If left unchallenged, this would set a dangerous precedent and give license to states to weaponize their official powers to punish the expression of political viewpoints they disagree with. We are determined to press forward with our case.”