ORLANDO, Fla. — Disney is opposing a request by Gov. Ron DeSantis to disqualify a choose overseeing the corporate’s First Amendment lawsuit towards the Florida governor and others wherein Disney says it was punished for talking out towards Florida laws that critics have dubbed “Don’t Say Gay.”
Disney stated in court docket papers filed Thursday that the request by attorneys for DeSantis, who declared his candidacy for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination earlier this week, didn’t come near assembly the requirements set out in Florida regulation for requiring a choose to be disqualified.
Last week, DeSantis‘ attorneys filed a movement looking for to disqualify Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker, who’s presiding over the case in federal court docket in Tallahassee. The movement stated Walker referenced the continuing dispute between the DeSantis administration and Disney throughout hearings in two unrelated lawsuits earlier than him coping with free speech points and concern of retaliation for violating new legal guidelines championed by the governor and Republican lawmakers.
Under Florida regulation, grounds for disqualification embody bias and a battle of curiosity. In its response, Disney stated the choose had proven no bias.
“Judges are not prohibited from referring accurately to widely-reported news events during oral arguments, nor must they disqualify themselves if cases related to those events happen to come before them months later,” Disney stated in its submitting.
Walker, who was nominated to the federal bench in 2012 by President Barack Obama and is now chief choose of the district, has stated in court docket filings that he received’t take any motion within the case till he guidelines on whether or not he ought to be disqualified.
The feud between DeSantis and Disney began final 12 months after the corporate, within the face of great strain, publicly opposed laws regarding classes on sexual orientation and gender identification in early grades that critics known as “Don’t Say Gay.”
As punishment, DeSantis took over Disney World’s governing district via laws handed by lawmakers and appointed a brand new board of supervisors. Before the brand new board got here in, the corporate signed agreements with the previous board made up of Disney supporters that stripped the brand new supervisors of design and building authority.
In response, the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature handed laws permitting the DeSantis-appointed board to repeal these agreements and made the theme park resort’s monorail system topic to state inspection, when it beforehand had been carried out in-house.
Disney filed the First Amendment lawsuit towards the Florida governor and the DeSantis-appointed board final month in federal court docket in Tallahassee, claiming violations of free speech and the contracts clause. The DeSantis-appointed board earlier this month sued Disney in state court docket in Orlando looking for to void the offers the corporate made with the earlier board.
Last week, Disney introduced that it was scrapping plans to construct a brand new campus in central Florida and relocate 2,000 staff from Southern California to work in digital expertise, finance and product improvement.
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