FSU vs. the ACC: Conference appeal of Leon County judge ruling heard in Florida court

After calling a lower court's ruling a "judicial foul," lawyers for the Atlantic Coast Conference told a panel of appellate judges that Florida State University's case against it needs to be heard in North Carolina, where the ACC is headquartered.

The claim comes as the ACC and FSU are locked into a multi-state legal battle over media rights contracts and the potential half-a-billion-dollar exit fee the school would owe the conference if it pursues an exit from the ACC.

Wednesday's hearing at the 1st District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee was the result of the ACC's appeal in June in which the conference argued that Circuit Judge John C. Cooper 's ruling to deny the conference a pause in proceedings based on his decision that the case should proceed in Florida.

Also, the ACC argued that since it filed its lawsuit over the same matter first in North Carolina, the case belongs there; the ACC is based in Charlotte.

The panel of judges – including Ross L. Bilbrey, Joseph Lewis Jr. and M. Kemmerly Thomas – did not rule immediately and gave no indication how long it would take to issue an opinion.

FSU: ACC didn't follow its own bylaws

FSU's legal team , led by Elliot Scherker of the Greenberg Traurig law firm, argued that the ACC didn't follow its own bylaws by approving the lawsuit against the school without a full vote of conference members. He said the lawsuit was an attempt to stop FSU from pursuing legal action.

As the school's legal team has done in the hearing in front of Cooper , Scherker brought up FSU's claims of sovereign immunity in the North Carolina case and their belief that the case should stay in Florida. (Sovereign immunity generally protects governments from being sued for money damages unless they agree.)

He said the ACC filed first only because FSU's Board of Trustees agreed to sue the conference in a Dec. 22, 2023, meeting that had to be held publicly because of Florida's Sunshine Laws. State law requires almost all meetings of boards or commissions to be open to the public.

"The action was only filed when the ACC knew as a result of Florida public meetings rules that FSU was going to file an action," Schereker said. "The ACC moved so rapidly that it didn't follow its own rules for the initiation of litigation."

ACC: Cases going on in two states at same time will lead to chaos

Alan Lawson, of the Lawson, Huck and Gonzalez law firm in Tallahassee, has spearheaded the ACC's legal efforts. He said the case belongs in North Carolina and that Cooper departed from the law.

Lawson said the ACC only sued FSU when it became clear the school was going to breach its contract with the ACC. He referred to the Board of Trustees meeting on Dec. 22 that approved legal action from FSU.

Lawson brought up the pitfalls of two nearly identical cases going on simultaneously in North Carolina and Florida : Opposite rulings, for example, would lead to further complicated and lengthy litigation to prove which is enforceable.

He also argued that the ACC is the "natural plaintiff" because it is suing for damages of a North Carolina contract, meaning that should be the location for legal proceedings. FSU disagrees, saying the school's lawsuit over who owns media rights gives it priority.

Lawson concluded his arguments by returning to the issue of jurisdiction in the case. He said the ACC's contract signed by member schools in nine states and the business those schools conduct in North Carolina make it clear where this lawsuit should be heard.

"You would have to be wearing garnet and gold colored lenses to come up with Tallahassee as the answer for the most natural place for that contract dispute," Lawson said.

What is the status of the other FSU vs. the ACC lawsuits?

• In the Leon County case, both  FSU and the ACC entered mediation talks  but did not come to an initial agreement per a court filing on Aug. 20. The ACC recently responded to FSU's second amended complaint for declaratory judgment as that case is still moving forward while the appeals process takes place.

• 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. The case has since been dropped by Moody as she  received and released heavily redacted copies of the ACC-ESPN agreement  in August.

• 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."

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

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU vs. the ACC: Conference appeal of rulings heard in Florida court