Walt Disney World and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have been involved in a heated battle over the last year regarding who has ultimate control over the land that Disney World sits on. Last year, the governor transformed the special district that oversaw the vacation kingdom, and Disney sued, claiming that the governor was retaliating against the company for exercising its free speech. A federal judge does not agree, as he has dismissed the lawsuit.
United States District Judge Allen Winsor said that Disney lacks standing to sue Governor DeSantis. The governor has requested the suit be dismissed based on the doctrine of sovereign immunity, the argument being that a government official cannot be sued for executing their duties. The suit against the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District has also been dismissed. Deadline reports the ruling stated that when a "statute is facially constitutional, a plaintiff cannot bring a free-speech challenge by claiming that the lawmakers who passed it acted with a constitutionally impermissible purpose."
This is certainly a massive blow to Disney, especially in the specific fight with DeSantis, as Disney had previously dismissed most of its claims against the governor, leaving only the First Amendment violation as the sole count to be decided.
The battle may be over, but the war is not. The suits were dismissed without prejudice, which means Disney has the freedom to refile them, something it certainly will do. Disney has repeatedly said that the fight is about protecting the free speech of corporations and making sure they cannot be punished for speaking out.
In 2022, The Walt Disney Company publicly took a stand against a Florida parental rights bill, one that detractors called "Don't Say Gay." Following that, a law was passed that transformed the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which had been created in the 1960s to oversee Disney World, into the CFTOD. The members of the board, previously landowners within the district, were replaced with new members handpicked by DeSantis.
The new board has systematically made significant changes to the way the district and Disney World work together. The new board has eliminated Disney World annual passes as an employee perk. There's been a reported exodus of special district employees with many claiming during exit interviews that the new board is making decisions for purely political reasons.
Whatever happens at the federal level, the CFTOD still has a legal fight with Disney World at the state level. Both sides are suing each other over a land deal between Disney World and the previous district board. The deal has technically already been undone by another Florida law, but a court will ultimately decide.
It took two months after the hearing for the judge to issue this ruling, so it seems unlikely the wheel will be spinning very fast going forward, but with Disney expected to refile this fight is far from over.
