Tallahassee judge denies ACC motion to dismiss Florida State lawsuit, case will go forward

The months-long wait for a ruling from Leon Circuit Judge John C. Cooper in the Florida State University vs. the Atlantic Coast Conference lawsuit is over.

In an email sent to the opposing legal teams Friday afternoon, Cooper formally denied the conference's motion to dismiss the case in Leon County, allowing the case to proceed through the state's legal system. The ruling comes after more than two months of discussion over three hearings, starting April 9.

In his email, Cooper also denied the motion to pause discovery, a process that allows parties to obtain evidence before trial. This would allow FSU and the ACC to request contracts, communications and other documents for use as evidence or to locate other evidence.

The Tallahassee Democrat obtained a copy of the email, reprinted below:

"Counsel, the following is my ruling on the remaining portions of the ACC Motion to Dismiss and the ACC Motion to Stay Discovery (filed on March 11, 2024) on which rulings were not announced at the last hearing:

My notes indicate that the last Count ruled on was a denial of the Motion to Dismiss Count III. As to the remaining Counts, the Motion to Dismiss is denied as to Counts IV, V, VI,VIII, and IX. There is no ruling as to Count VII since no portion of the Motion to Dismiss was directed to that Count. The Second Amended Complaint shall be answered within 20 days of the date of the order. Plaintiff's counsel is directed to draft the order.

As to the Motion to Stay Discovery, my ruling is:

ACC filed a Motion to Stay Discovery on March 11, 2024. On May 13, 2024, this Court granted the Motion to Stay Discovery 'until such time as any motion by the ACC directed to FSU's second amended complaint is heard and decided by the Court.' Since the ACC's Motion to Dismiss has been decided, the March 11, 2024, ACC Motion to Stay Discovery is hereby denied and discovery may continue. Any pending request for discovery must be responded to within 30 days of the date of this order. Plaintiff's counsel is directed to draft the order on this issue."

The ruling comes just days after the third hearing between the two parties, in which Cooper denied the conference's motion to dismiss based on personal jurisdiction and ruled that the remainder of the hearing would be done via paper or email communication. (Personal jurisdiction is a legal term that refers to a court's power to make decisions affecting a particular person or entity.)

This is a similar ruling to what the ACC received in North Carolina, where a Mecklenburg County judge denied FSU's motion to dismiss the lawsuit in North Carolina. FSU has since appealed that decision to the North Carolina Supreme Court, something the conference will have an option to do in Florida.

This ruling opens the door for two simultaneous lawsuits to take place in both Florida and North Carolina as the ACC and FSU continue to be locked in a marathon legal battle that has lasted since last December.

What is the current state of the other FSU, ACC lawsuits?

In May, FSU filed a nearly 600-page complaint in North Carolina asking for the state's supreme court to review the April decision given by the judge there. The petition asks for a writ of certiorari, a formal request for the court to review a case for error or a violation.

The ACC responded to FSU's appeal, saying FSU's appeal "fails on its face" because it doesn't show that the court's decision was “patently arbitrary."

In April, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody filed a lawsuit against the conference demanding the media contracts, Grant of Rights and ESPN agreement be revealed in accordance with Florida public records law.

On June 13, Moody said she doesn't need a hearing to get the media contracts from the ACC, citing Florida's public record law and saying a judge can make a ruling on her request now.

Liam Rooney covers preps sports for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at LRooney@gannett.com or on Twitter @__liamrooney

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU gets major win in lawsuit vs. ACC; judge denies motion to dismiss