US Judge Dismisses Disney's Lawsuit

A US judge has sided with Florida governor Ron DeSantis (left) in his fight with Disney, rejecting a lawsuit that had accused the Republican of organizing a campaign of "government retaliation". 

 

Judge Allen Winsor said the actions that Disney opposed were legal and it lacked standing to sue the governor. 

 

Florida moved to tighten its oversight of Disney's amusement park last year. The change came after the company criticized a state law that limited the teaching of sexuality in schools. 

 

In his ruling Judge Winsor said the changes were clearly detrimental to Disney, which had enjoyed unusual power over the special tax district where their Walt Disney World park is located since 1967. They gave DeSantis the power to appoint members to the district's governing board, removing that authority from landowners in the 25,000-acre district, of which Disney are by far the biggest. 

 

But the judge said state legislators had the right to make the changes and the company had failed to prove they faced any imminent harm from the governor's actions. 

 

In dismissing the suit, the judge wrote that courts cannot rule that a law is unconstitutional solely because lawmakers may have had an "illegitimate motivation" in enacting it. "Because that is what Disney seek here, their claim fails as a matter of law", he wrote. 

 

Disney said they would press forward with their case, which had argued that the moves threatened their business and violated their free speech rights. 

 

"This is an important case with serious implications for the rule of law, and it will not end here", the company 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".