Navigation 12 attorneys general call on Atlantic Coast Conference to dismiss lawsuit against FSU
An amicus brief filed by 12 state attorneys general calls on the North Carolina Supreme Court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) that attempts to block Florida State University from leaving the athletics association.
The brief was filed Nov. 21 by attorneys general in Florida and 11 other states in an effort to assert their constitutional right not to be sued in other states’ courts without their expressed consent. The amicus petition was submitted in the wake of a Mecklenburg County, N.C., court decision that concluded the North Carolina-based ACC could sue FSU in the North Carolina court system. That court held the university had waived its sovereign immunity from such lawsuits when it became an ACC member, since North Carolina law allows a nonprofit group to assert claims against its members.
The litigation stems from efforts by FSU to leave the conference due to disagreements over the ACC’s holding of sports media rights for FSU football games. The ACC argues that FSU would be legally bound to pay the conference hundreds of millions of dollars in order to pull out of the conference.
