Florida’s top lawyer has joined in the war between Disney and Governor Ron DeSantis, a day after it emerged that the company’s previous board pulled a fast one on them by passing restrictive covenants that strip the new board of many of its powers.
Attorney General Ashley Moody’s chief of staff James Percival sent a letter to the former Reedy Creek Improvement District board members Thursday demanding copies of all communications relating to the vote. However, legal experts now say that the order ‘can’t be challenged.’
‘Please limit your search to documents discussing an intention or goal of circumventing, avoiding, frustrating, mitigating or otherwise attempting to avoid the effects of anticipated actions by the Florida governor and the Florida Legislature,’ the letter read according to the Orlando Sentinel.
Disney used an obscure legal clause that name checks King Charles III to strip DeSantis’ oversight board of its power during a vote on February 8.
Despite the subterfuge, DeSantis has remained bullish. ‘There’s a lot of little back-and-forths going on now with the state taking control, but rest assured, you know, you ain’t seen nothing yet,’ he told a crowd in Georgia on Sunday.
Ron DeSantis teased that Disney may not have gotten the last laugh in their bitter battle
The Reedy Creek Improvement District stretches for nearly 40 square miles and includes the entire Walt Disney World Resort. It will be renamed the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District under the new bill
Government boards, such as Reedy Cree, are required to act in the public interest, deliberate publicly and to hold meetings with reasonable notice to the public, according to Florida’s Sunshine Law.
Violations of the law can void actions taken by boards and members can be fined up to $500 and/or spend 60 days in jail.
In a statement, Disney said all agreements were above board and took place in public.
‘All agreements signed between Disney and the District were appropriate, and were discussed and approved in open, noticed public forums in compliance with Florida’s Government in the Sunshine law,’ the statement said.
Florida AG Moody is a DeSantis loyalist who is a supporter of ex-President Donald Trump.
The five new supervisors were appointed by the Republican governor to the board after the Florida Legislature overhauled Disney’s government in retaliation for the entertainment giant publicly opposing so-called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ legislation that bars instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, as well as lessons deemed not age-appropriate.
Jake Schumer, a municipal attorney in the Orlando law firm of Shepard, Smith, Kohlmyer & Hand, told WESH that the new DeSantis appointed board has its ‘hands tied’ about how they can use their own land thanks to the previous board’s moves.
‘So it can’t build a building taller than four stories. It has to talk to Disney before it builds anything on its own property and that’s very extraordinary,’ Schumer said.
Schumer went on today that a challenge from the new board would likely need to go all the way to the Supreme Court, which could take up to five years, unless an agreement is reached beforehand.
He also said that taxpayers shouldn’t worry about a lengthy legal battle as the board’s legal fees will be paid by Disney through the company’s taxes.
In a separate interview with the Miami Herald, Schumer said that the new board is still responsible for ‘basically keeping the lights on, keep the roads moving.’
Under the terms of the agreement, the district is prohibited from using the name ‘Disney’ or any symbols associated with the theme park resort without the company’s permission, nor can it use the likeness of Mickey Mouse, other Disney characters or other intellectual property in any manner.
The company can sue for damages for any violations, and the agreement is in effect until perpetuity, according to the declaration.
Sensationally, the dossier states that the provisions will remain in place until ’21 years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III, king of England living as of the date of this declaration’.
This ‘last survivor’ is one-year-old Princess Lilibet of Sussex, who lives in California.
The so-called ‘Royal Clause’ is used by lawyers to avoid rules against contracts which last in perpetuity. The British Royals were selected because information about their family tree is readily available, and because the family generally have ‘longer life expectancy,’ according to law firm Bricketts.
‘It’s a fallback. They had some fun,’ Schumer told the Herald.
Another legal expert, JC Planas, who lectures on Disney’s district told the Herald: ‘A development order like this can’t be challenged.’
‘There’s no standing on behalf of the governor. There’s no standing on behalf of the new board. The only people standing are the residents because it’s a development agreement,’ he continued.
In taking on Disney, DeSantis furthered his reputation as a culture warrior willing to battle perceived political enemies and wield the power of state government to accomplish political goals, a strategy that is expected to continue ahead of his potential White House run.
The new supervisors replaced a board that had been controlled by Disney during the previous 55 years that the government operated as the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
The new board members held their first meeting earlier this month and said they found out about the agreement after their appointments.
‘We’re going to have to deal with it and correct it,’ board member Brian Aungst said Wednesday. ‘It’s a subversion of the will of the voters and the Legislature and the governor. It completely circumvents the authority of this board to govern.’