It is pro forma for the conference to sue the school that is leaving the conference. Happens every time.
The ACC filed a lawsuit in a North Carolina court seeking a declaratory judgment, presumably of breach of contract, seeking payment of the exit fee (liquidated damages?).
Link to news story: http://www.dukechronicle.com/article...aryland-monday
I'm sure there's some finer legal minds here who know more contract law than I do, but this feels like it's a tough case. The general principle is that liquidated damages cannot be punitive, and there's good reason to question if the exit fee is punitive. Will be interesting to follow, that's for sure.
It is pro forma for the conference to sue the school that is leaving the conference. Happens every time.
~rthomas
This ruling could make teams like FSU and Clemson stay put. I for one hope the fee holds firm or the ACC may go the way of the Big East.
You mean to New Orleans?
http://espn.go.com/college-sports/st...-just-football
Coach K on Kyle Singler - "What position does he play? ... He plays winner."
"Duke is never the underdog" - Quinn Cook
The defense lawyer in me says: "bwahaha!"
The plaintiff lawyer in me says: "hmmmmm..."
The cynic in me says: "boy, it would be funny to have Alaska -- er, I mean Marland -- taxpayers subsidizing sports in the Triangle. "
But mainly, I say: "screw the Twerps, don't let the door hit you in the rump!"
Ok, I need someone to explain this to me. What grounds does Maryland have for NOT paying the exit fee, if it is something that was approved by the ACC by majority vote?
It has been suggested that the exit fee is what is known at common law as a liquidated damages clause. At common law, the party seeking to collect liquidated damages must show that knowing the actual damages at the time of contract was difficult and also must show that the liquidated damage amount is a reasonable approximation of the actual damages.
It's not my area of law, so I haven't thought about this for many years.
Frankly, if the ACC and its members want to agree to an exit fee, I don't understand why a court should second guess the amount of the fee.
An interesting article on Md's financial situation:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201..._a14&eref=sihp
Thanks for all who responded to my question. Unfortunately, to this software engineer with zero knowledge of law, none of them make any sense to me. The exit fee must be equal to liquidated damages? Why? I thought it was just a fee. Like the fee my cell phone carrier charges if I decide to break my contract and go to a different carrier. Maryland is arguing that the fee is "punitive and intended to discourage leaving"? Of course it is! That's exactly what the fee is intended to be. How does that constitute an argument for why they shouldn't have to pay it?
Again, I think I'm missing something. Because most of the people that I read seem to assume that Maryland is going to win this suit, or that a settlement will be reached in which they pay a substantially reduced fee.
Do not know NC law, but the test of validity is usually whether the amount is a reasonable pre-estimate of damages. I would want to look at the discussion around its implementation to raise a good defense if I was so inclined.
Louisville joining may help mitigate damages as well. Depends on NC law.