A person wearing a mouse costume holds a Governor Ron DeSantis poster stands where supporters of Florida’s Republican-backed “Don’t Say Gay” bill that bans classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity for many young students gather for a rally outside Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, U.S. April 16, 2022.
Octavio Jones | Reuters
Disney on Thursday amended its federal lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to focus solely on its First Amendment claim that the governor politically retaliated against the company.
Disney last week had asked to drop its other claims in the case, which concern a dispute over Walt Disney World’s development contracts, because they are being actively pursued in a separate state-level lawsuit in Florida.
The revision, which nixes four claims Disney had previously presented in the case, shrinks the company’s federal civil complaint to 48 pages, down from 84 in the prior version.
It’s the latest legal wrinkle in Disney’s two lawsuits stemming from its protracted battle with DeSantis that began last year, when the company publicly denounced the controversial classroom bill dubbed “Don’t Say Gay” by critics.
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