Disney v. Ron DeSantis: United States District Judge imposes first deadlines in high-stakes lawsuit

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Posted: Friday June 2, 2023 1:!2pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Judge Allen C Winsor, who has been presiding over the case for just one day after replacing Judge Mark Walker, has set initial deadlines for Disney's lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

The deadlines relate to DeSantis filing motions to dismiss Disney's case and the subsequent responses by Disney. The timeline for this phase of the case is through to at least early August 2023.

Here are the deadlines filed today by Judge Winsor.

DeSantis' deadline to file motions to dismiss is 6/26/2023.
Rule 26 Meeting Report due by 6/27/2023.
Disney's deadline to respond to any motions to dismiss is 7/26/2023.
DeSantis may reply no later than 8/9/2023.

Original Judge Mark Walker, disqualified himself from the case yesterday due to a family member owning a small amount of stock in The Walt Disney Company. The case has now been assigned to 46 year old Orlando-born Republican Judge Allen C Winsor, who was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2019.

Disney is suing DeSantis for what it says has been "a targeted campaign of government retaliation-orchestrated at every step by Governor DeSantis as punishment for Disney's protected speech-now threatens Disney's business operations, jeopardizes its economic future in the region, and violates its constitutional rights."

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peter114358 days ago

No. But it’s the start of the process

MR.Dis8 days ago

Does this mean a new agreement has been reached with Disney? I am trying to read between the lines on just what this is saying.

flyakite8 days ago

castlecake2.021 days ago

Yes

Stripes21 days ago

Has Disney/CFTOD continued to replace the purple direction signage with the new blue color scheme since CFTOD took over?

mkt21 days ago

You're right. The new document will be different. It will be "different" in the way that Chris Gaines was "different" from Garth Brooks or how the drummer from Nirvana is "different" from the singer of the Foo Fighters.

Unbanshee21 days ago

Both are effectively picked by the Governor, just not technically. Look no further than the communications "strategy" with the replacement of Gilzean of the Governor's office getting out ahead of every single step of the process

lazyboy97o21 days ago

The settlement acknowledged the “need” to change the comprehensive plan, which undermines this idea. So too does the lack of an agreement, as the 2032 Comprehensive Plan wasn’t that different than the again in force 2020 Comprehensive Plan.

Brian21 days ago

That's understandable for sure. I just felt inclined to make the distinction due to the ongoing conversation, as the district administrator is selected by the board, while the board is selected by the governor.

mkt21 days ago

The new agreement will be functionally the same as the one Disney was sued over.

pdude8121 days ago

You're right. This has been going on so long I just lumped all the antagonists together.

Brian21 days ago

Not to nitpick, but Gilzean was district administrator, not a board member.

pdude8121 days ago

A bigger risk than keeping Garcia and Gilzean on the board as active disruptors? I don't agree with their decision to stall the federal lawsuit, but I understand why they saw the status quo as a risk to growth over the next few years.