The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) has narrowed its focus in its federal lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to solely focus on the company’s First Amendment argument that the governor politically retaliated against it.
Last week, the entertainment titan asked to drop four other claims in its case regarding a dispute over development contracts for Walt Disney World because those claims are being pursued in a state-level case in Florida.
The amendment significantly cuts the page count of Disney’s lawsuit down to 48 from 84, according to reports.
The legal battle between Disney and DeSantis began in March 2022, when then CEO Bob Chapek said he called DeSantis and voiced opposition to the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill that had passed the Florida legislature.
The company would go on to release a statement opposing the bill, which restricts discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms when DeSantis signed it into law.
In response, DeSantis and his Republican allies leaned into the culture war battle even further, enacting a law targeting a special local governance and tax district that gave Disney significant autonomy to manage its own daily operations.
Florida tried to replace the district’s board with state-appointed supervisors but Disney beat them to the punch, drawing up new contracts that included the infamous “King Charles clause” to extend its control for decades.
DeSantis’ new board voted to nullify the contracts in April, and Disney subsequently filed a federal lawsuit.
Going forward, the contract issues will be handled exclusively in state court. The federal suit will focus exclusively on the issue of DeStantis’ alleged political retaliation for Disney’s expressed opposition to the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com
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