Judge denies ACC's motion to postpone Florida State lawsuit

A judge in Leon County has denied the ACC’s motion to postpone Florida State’s lawsuit against the conference, according to the Tampa Bay Times’ Matt Baker. A hearing is now set for April 22.

In his decision, Judge John C. Cooper argued the ACC is “forum shopping,” citing an affidavit from the president at Virginia to make his decision to stay – or postpone – the lawsuit. He also pointed out problems with the ACC-ESPN contracts and whether they should be public records under Florida law, as well as issues with sovereign immunity for Florida State.

Cooper’s decision comes after Judge Louis A. Bledsoe denied Florida State’s motion to dismiss the ACC’s lawsuit in a 76-page filing earlier this week. The ACC previously filed a similar motion to dismiss in Leon County, arguing lawsuit should be heard in the state of North Carolina, emphasizing it is where the contract should be decided.

“The court finds this argument without merit,” Bledsoe wrote in his decision. The judge also dismissed the ACC’s argument the Seminoles breached fiduciary duties to the conference.

Later Tuesday, the ACC released a statement disagreeing with the judge’s decision.

“While we respect the court’s decision, we strongly disagree with its determination surrounding our requested stay in Florida, especially following the North Carolina court’s decision,” the statement read. “We are examining our options as it relates to next steps.

The legal battle stems from the ACC’s Grant of Rights, which FSU is challenging as it looks to potentially leave the league and argued it should be able to depart without penalty. A grant of rights agreement gives conferences the right to broadcast all member schools’ home games for the duration of the media rights deal. In the ACC’s case, the GOR binds the league, schools and broadcast partners until the rights deal with ESPN expires in 2036. 

The first hearing in the dueling lawsuits occurred last month in North Carolina, and in his decision, Bledsoe wrote that he believes a court in the state has “a local interest” in resolving the dispute.

“Moreover, while FSU is the only ACC Member Institution involved in this lawsuit, the determination of whether the ACC’s Grant of Rights Agreements are legally enforceable is critically important to all Members of the Conference, and the resolution of that issue is of tremendous consequence to the North Carolina-based ACC since it may directly bear on the Conference’s ability to meet its contractual commitments to ESPN as well the Conference’s future revenues, stability, and long-term viability,” the decision said. “For these reasons, the Court concludes that a North Carolina court has ‘a local interest in resolving the controversy’ that exceeds the local interest of the Florida courts.”

Pete Nakos contributed.