FSU's Motions to Dismiss ACC's Lawsuit Over Grant of Rights Denied by Judge

A judge on Thursday denied two motions by Florida State to dismiss or stay a lawsuit filed by the ACC, per ESPN's David Hale.

The ruling by Judge Louis A. Bledsoe III of Mecklenburg County "is seen as a significant win for the ACC," per Hale, as the conference is hoping that it will force Florida State to honor its grant of rights agreement and pay the exit fee of over $500 million if it tries to leave for another conference before 2036. The ACC praised the ruling on social media:

Florida State has the option to appeal the ruling.

The ruling clears the path for the legal battle between the ACC and Florida State to take place in North Carolina instead of Florida. The ACC filed its lawsuit in Charlotte in December to get ahead of a lawsuit by FSU, which the school filed the next day after being approved by the board of trustees.

Florida State president Rick McCullough said in August 2023, per The Athletic's Nicole Auerbach, that Florida State would have to consider leaving the ACC if there was not a "radical change" to the revenue distribution.

The Seminoles ultimately did not opt to give notice of their intention to leave by the Aug. 15 deadline. However, after being left out of the College Football Playoff, the school reportedly renewed talks about its future with the conference in December.

Florida State is trying to get out of the grant of rights agreement, which gives the ACC ownership of the school's media rights through June 2036, while the ACC is seeking to have the rights upheld.

Florida State argued that the ACC's lawsuit should receive a stay or dismissal based, in part, on sovereign immunity, as the school believes it is covered since it is a state institution. The ACC's attorney said during hearings on FSU's motion to dismiss that the university's legal team's tactics to get the conference's lawsuit thrown out were like "a game of whack-a-mole."

In addition to Florida State, Clemson has also filed a lawsuit against the ACC in South Carolina arguing against the conference's grant of rights and deeming the exit fee of three times the conference's annual revenue to be "excessive." The ACC filed a countersuit against Clemson a day later in Charlotte.