DeSantis asks choose to dismiss Disney lawsuit, claims immunity

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday requested a federal courtroom to dismiss The Walt Disney Co.’s lawsuit in opposition to him, which claims unlawful retaliation over a political dispute.

Within the movement, obtained by ABC Information, DeSantis’ attorneys argue that he and the secretary of Florida’s Division of Financial Alternative are “immune” from the swimsuit. (Disney is ABC Information’ mother or father firm.)

“Neither the Governor nor the Secretary implement any of the legal guidelines at situation, so Disney lacks standing to sue them,” DeSantis’ attorneys write.

They add that DeSantis “is entitled to legislative immunity, which shields ‘each governors’ and legislators’ actions within the proposal, formulation, and passage of laws.'”

DeSantis himself has contended the swimsuit is with out advantage.

“I believe it is political,” he stated in April.

In April, Disney sued DeSantis and different Florida officers over a marketing campaign that the corporate alleged was “patently retaliatory, patently anti-business, and patently unconstitutional.”

Disney accused Florida of launching “a focused marketing campaign of presidency retaliation — orchestrated at each step by Gov. DeSantis as punishment for Disney’s protected speech — [which] now threatens Disney’s enterprise operations, jeopardizes its financial future within the area, and violates its constitutional rights.”

DeSantis and Disney have been at odds since 2022, after the corporate publicly criticized the Parental Rights in Training Regulation, which restricts content material regarding sexual orientation and gender id in some Ok-12 school rooms.

Critics labeled the regulation “Do not Say Homosexual,” however supporters of the regulation say it permits dad and mom to determine what their kids can find out about sure topics.

Disney’s swimsuit states that after the LGBTQ-related regulation and subsequent controversy, DeSantis moved to take management over the particular tax district round Disney parks within the Orlando space, which has allowed the corporate to primarily self-govern its operations there.

The Florida Legislature voted to dissolve the previous board over the district and create a DeSantis-appointed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District as a replacement.

ABC Information’ Mark Osborne and Kiara Alfonseca contributed to this report.