Orlando, Fla. — In its state lawsuit against Disney, attorneys for the Walt Disney World governing district taken over last year by Gov. Ron DeSantis' allies don't want the governor's appointees to answer questions under oath. On Monday, district attorneys requested a protective injunction to prevent DeSantis-appointed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board members from giving Disney attorneys videotaped depositions.
Disney and the DeSantis appointees are suing in state court over Disney World's governing district. Disney loyalists controlled the district until last year, when the company turned against Florida's "Don't Say Gay" statute. It provides firefighting, planning, and mosquito control, and Disney backers ran it for most of its 50 years.
District attorneys cite the "apex doctrine," which states that high-level government executives shouldn't be deposed unless opposing parties have exhausted all other methods. Few U.S. states use the doctrine, including Florida.
District attorneys stated in their motion that Disney cannot prove that board members have unique, intimate information relevant to any of the allegations, counterclaims, or defenses in this action to overcome the apex doctrine. “Disney's assault-style attempt to depose all board members is simply improper harassment of these high-level government officials.” The board members said taking depositions would “impede” their work and detract resources and attention from district oversight.
Disney announced earlier this month that it would interrogate six current and former DeSantis-appointed board members under oath for “discovery,” or case research. Disney filed a public records lawsuit against the district earlier this year, claiming its responses to its requests were “unreasonably delayed” and “woefully inadequate.”
Many experienced staffers have left the area since the takeover last year, alleging in exit surveys that the governing body has become politicized. The district's administrator quit this month to become a county elections supervisor at half his $400,000 salary, and the DeSantis-appointed board chairman left the next week.
DeSantis and Disney clashed in 2022 after Disney publicly rejected a state bill named “Don’t Say Gay” under internal and external pressure. Before suspending his presidential campaign this year, DeSantis used Disney as a punching bag in talks to promote the 2022 law, which limits early grade sexual orientation and gender identity lessons.
As punishment, the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature gave DeSantis control of the district and established a new board of supervisors. Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees for violating its free speech rights by opposing the law. January saw a federal judge dismiss the complaint. Disney appeals.
Before DeSantis appointees took over the district early this year, Disney friends on its board negotiated agreements with Disney to give the firm control over Disney World design and construction. The new DeSantis appointees said the “eleventh-hour deals” weakened their powers, so the district sued the company in Orlando state court to dissolve the contracts. Disney counterclaims include asking the state court to uphold the agreements.
stay turned for development