State of Florida Suits ACC to Remain in Tallahassee Under New Ruling

The state of Florida’s lawsuit against ACC will continue to proceed in Tallahassee after another ruling on Friday.

Judge John C. Cooper denied the Atlantic Coast Conference’s remaining motions to dismiss five counts contained in FSU’s complaint against the league. He did so via email — first reported by the Tallahassee Democrat — without explaining his rationale. The decision allows FSU to continue to raise its grievances regarding sovereign immunity, antitrust concerns and the unenforceability of the league’s rights grant while FSU considers leaving its conference home since 1991.

ACC’s next response to FSU’s nine-complaint complaint is expected within 20 days of the court’s final order. Cooper also paved the way for further discoveries – the exchange of information and documents.

Cooper’s email follows a similar ruling by a jury during a day-long hearing in the Leon County Courthouse earlier this week. He dismissed ACC jurisdictional concerns about whether a North Carolina-based nonprofit could be sued in Florida. Instead, Cooper argued that the ACC could be in a Florida courtroom because the league does enough business in the state (for example, televising sporting events at member schools FSU and Miami). The judge also denied the conference’s motion to dismiss two specific parts of FSU’s complaint: that the ACC’s $140 million exit fee is unenforceable and that the ACC violated its constitution/bylaws in numerous ways, from improper votes to unequal College Football Playoff payouts.

This week’s decisions mean that complex, critical litigation will continue to unfold in multiple courtrooms across multiple states. ACC sues FSU, North Carolina; the school appealed the earlier denial to that state’s Supreme Court. Clemson and the ACC have their own dueling lawsuits in the Carolinas over the same contract and general issues.

The answer – or answers – the judges reach in the coming weeks, months and (gulp) years will determine how much the Seminoles and Tigers will have to pay if they leave the ACC. The nine-figure exit fee is one piece. A bigger factor is whether the school or ACC will own future television rights if the team escapes before its current contract with ESPN expires (later 2036). According to FSU, the value of these rights exceeds $400 million.

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