A district board appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis passed a motion Monday during an emergency meeting to counter-sue Walt Disney World.
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The lawsuit will be filed in central Florida, Martin Garcia, chairman of the board, said.
Disney sued the governor and the board last week, alleging that DeSantis and his office have engaged in "a targeted campaign of government retaliation" against Disney that was "orchestrated at every step by Governor DeSantis as punishment for Disney's protected speech."
"We have no choice now but to respond," Garcia said of the motion he put forward, which was supported by the five-member board. "We will seek justice in state court here in central Florida where both it and Disney do business. Yes, we'll seek justice in our own backyard."
The board-backed lawsuit stands in contrast to where Disney filed its lawsuit, in Tallahassee. That case was assigned to Judge Mark Walker, an appointee of President Barack Obama who previously blocked a DeSantis-backed law that restricted how workplaces instituted diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings.
This is a developing story and will be updated.