ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – An appeals court on Monday granted Disney’s request for a two-month break in a federal lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his appointees to the Walt Disney World governing district after the two sides reached a settlement agreement. litigation in state court.
Disney’s request last Friday to the federal appeals court was motivated by last month’s settlement agreement involving two Florida lawsuits between Disney and the DeSantis-appointed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. After DeSantis took over the management of the theme park, the company and the county began fighting in state court over how Disney World would be developed in the future.
As part of the settlement, Disney agreed to pause the separate federal lawsuit, which is being appealed, pending negotiations on a new development agreement with DeSantis’ appointees. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things, and was controlled by Disney supporters for most of its five decades until the DeSantis appointees took it over last year.
Disney had a deadline of next week to file an initial brief in its appeal to the federal Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, but that deadline is now set for mid-June.
The agreement ended nearly two years of litigation that was sparked by DeSantis’ takeover of the district by Disney supporters following the company’s opposition to Florida’s so-called Don’t Say Gay law.
The 2022 law banned classroom lessons about sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades and was championed by the Republican governor, who used Disney as a punching bag in speeches while running for president earlier this year. He later left the race.
As punishment for Disney’s opposition to the controversial law, DeSantis took over the governing district through legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and appointed a new board of supervisors. Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees, claiming that the company’s free speech rights were violated for speaking out against the legislation. A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in January, but Disney appealed.
Before it was filled by DeSantis appointees early last year, the board — then composed of Disney supporters — agreed to give Disney control over the design and construction of Disney World. DeSantis’ new appointees claimed the “eleventh-hour deals” emasculated their powers and the district sued the company in state court in Orlando to have the contracts voided.
Disney filed counterclaims and asked the state court to declare the agreements valid and enforceable.
Under the settlement, the development agreement and covenants giving Disney design and construction control would be considered null and void, and the new board agreed to operate under a master plan that was in effect before DeSantis took over the district.
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Follow Mike Schneider on X, formerly known as Twitter: @MikeSchneiderAP.
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Published: 08 Apr 2024, 23:04 IST