Court date set for Central Florida Tourism Oversight District v. Disney lawsuit

Jun 05, 2023 in "Reedy Creek Improvement District"

Posted: Monday June 5, 2023 11:00am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

A date has been set for the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District lawsuit v Disney filed in the 9th Judicial Circuit Orange County.

Court documents filed today state a hearing for the case to be held on July 14, 2023 at 2pm.

Filed on May 1, the 188-page lawsuit opens by saying that "in an effort to stymie Florida's elected representatives, Disney covertly cobbled together a series of eleventh- hour deals with its soon-to-be-replaced puppet government."

The suit continues, "Disney hoped to tie the hands of the new, independent Board and to preserve Disney's special status as its own government in the District for at least the next thirty years. These agreements reek of a backroom deal—drafted by Disney with the acquiescence a lawyer who represented both Disney and the District, set for hearing without proper notice, and hustled through a compliant Disney-controlled Board that Disney knew would not dwell long on the issue. But perhaps out of haste or arrogance, Disney's deals violate basic principles of Florida constitutional, statutory, and common law. As a result, they are null and void—not even worth the paper they were printed on."

Disney is also suing the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in a federal court.

Disney's federal April 26, 2023 lawsuit was filed in response to Governor DeSantis' attempts to replace the Reedy Creek Improvement District with his own hand-picked board. Disney's lawsuit says that DeSantis' actions violated its First Amendment and other constitutional rights, alleging they were motivated by retaliation due to the company's opposition to the so-called "don't say gay" law related to parental rights in schools.

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Chi841 hour ago

But what you’re proposing isn’t a reasonable interpretation. It’s reading way too much into “Yeah, yeah. No, I would” when asked if he would talk to Iger. The interviewer didn’t ask about or even mention the lawsuit or negotiations in his question.

WoundedDreamer1 hour ago

Yeah, but doesn't that run counter to the "he refuses to talk to Iger" narrative? And what would they talk about? It had to be over a settlement agreement. He was already willing to talk and move forward back in August of 2023. I guess it's a difference in interpretation.

Dcgc281 hour ago

Honestly it’s going to be business as usual moving forward. Florida needs Disney and Disney needs Florida. It was inevitable that it would pass in some sort. The real winners here are the state of Florida and Disney because they’re going to go back to printing money with each other. Oh and I guess the people who lean politically with Desantis. But they only win vicariously. They’re still getting robbed by the state and companies involved in the situation.

Chi841 hour ago

No. Politicians, especially ones who are lawyers, are very good at limiting their answers to only the question asked. He was asked if he had spoken with Iger and said no. He was asked if he would talk to him and he said “Yeah, yeah. No, I would” There’s reasonable no way that answer can be stretched out to become an offer to engage in settlement negotiations regarding the lawsuit. Maybe he meant he would talk to Iger to tell him there’s no way he would ever settle the lawsuit so Disney should just give up.

WoundedDreamer1 hour ago

What would Iger and DeSantis talk about other than a settlement and moving on? It does sound like an awkward phone call, though. 🤔 🤣

WoundedDreamer1 hour ago

You're not wrong about this. I do think of the RCID as having a been a vestigial organ of sorts. At the time it was important to Walt Disney World's success, but as things have evolved it became less important. That doesn't necessarily justify its removal, but I'm optimistic about Disney's ability to navigate things moving forward.

mikejs781 hour ago

No, he didn't.

Chi841 hour ago

But the words you quoted don’t support what you’re saying about him agreeing to negotiate if approached.

WoundedDreamer1 hour ago

He agreed to negotiate if approached, he suggested everyone get back to business, and he said Disney should stop fighting. It's not like he suddenly had a personality switch. This has been his stated view since August 2023. He said he was unwilling to concede on giving Disney RCID back, which they have not. It's all there. The framework he was willing to negotiate. I do wonder if Disney decided to keep the lawsuits going despite knowing they'd likely settle, because it was bad for DeSantis. It'd be clever... That could explain their behavior over the last year.

Tony the Tigger1 hour ago

Which one of those two built the town from the swamp up? Neither exists without Disney going first. But let’s give more football teams free stadiums. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Chi841 hour ago

But can you substantiate your statement about him offering to “come to the table” or negotiate a settlement? There’s nothing in that statement that says anything close to what you claim.

WoundedDreamer1 hour ago

From an August 2023 Interview: Sullivan: And I whether he had spoken with Disney CEO Bob Iger Gov. DeSantis: I have not, but – Sullivan: Would you? Gov. DeSantis: Yeah, yeah. No, I would. (Explains the Disney-Florida fight) …. So I would just say just as a parent, look, my wife and I, we got married at Walt Disney World, okay, so it’s not like we’re opposed. I mean, we’ve appreciated working with them over the years. But I would just say go back to what you did well. I think it’s going to be the right business decision and all that. But where we are today, you know, we’ve basically moved on. They’re suing the state of Florida, they’re gonna lose that lawsuit. So, what I would say is drop the lawsuit, you know, you have the state that even CNBC ranks as number one of all 50 states for economy, we lead the nation in new business formations, unemployment is incredibly low, great fiscal posture, people are bringing capital into Florida. This is a great place to do business. Your competitors all do very well here, Universal, Sea World, they have not had the same special privileges as you have. So, all we want to do is treat everybody the same and let’s move forward. I’m totally fine with that. But I’m not fine with giving extraordinary privileges, you know, to one special company at the exclusion of everybody else.

JoeCamel2 hours ago

I think Bob said they had tried to negotiate before that?

mmascari2 hours ago

I believe he said Disney should move on, not come to the table. Not settlement talk, just declaration of victory and the other side should give up. The words move on and settlement are nothing alike.