Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis‘s legal team has submitted a sarcastically phrased motion to dismiss Disney’s lawsuit against the state on the grounds of legislative immunity.
DeSantis’s lawyers argue he and the Secretary of Florida’s Department of Economic Opportunity, Dane Eagle, are both “absolutely immune” from being sued by Disney as the Governor’s decisions were taken “in the sphere of legitimate legislative activity.”
The legal theory is pretty sound, given the precedent. But the wording on the motion to dismiss is also striking, and includes sardonic linguistics with rhetorical questions, mockery, and casual turns of phrase.
“But first things first,” opens one paragraph, before going on to establish the Governor’s immunity claims. The document also refers to the “waning day of [Disney’s] corporate kingdom,” and in one hyper-casual area, describes Disney’s sweetheart deal in Florida in the following terms:
“Local taxes? Disney set them. Building and safety codes? Disney set those, too. Caps on land development? Disney made the final call. Disney could exercise eminent domain, permitting it to annex territory even outside the District’s borders, all without legislative approval.”
The motion to dismiss is likely to prevail, though in a world where precedent seems to mean less and less, flippancy is perhaps an ill-advised legal strategy.
Disney filed its lawsuit against the Florida state government after a Florida oversight board voted to override pre-existing agreements to permit an expansion of Disney World as well as to maintain control over neighboring land. In response, Disney accused DeSantis of waging a “relentless campaign to weaponize government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint.”
DeSantis has dismissed Disney’s claims as without merit and merely “political.”
