Got it? Yeah, neither do we...The state of Maryland sued the Atlantic Coast Conference in North Carolina court after the conference decided to take legal action to recoup some $52 million in exit fees.
For those un-initiated, the University of Maryland, a charter member of the ACC, announced in November they'd be leaving to join the Big 10. The main reason cited for such a deal--More TV Money.
The school did that knowing full well that the league and it member schools (including Maryland) had recently passed the $50 million exit fee to prevent exactly what the Terrapins did.
((**--Ed.Note--It appears the ACC is withholding shared revenue with Maryland as collateral to get their money. Maryland is not happy**))
The Washington Post tries to explain RIGHT HERE
Maryland's attorney general released a statement saying the "Exit Fee" is an anti-trust violation and that the court of one state can't force the other to submit to its jurisdiction.
Parsing the words into English, here's what they mean. Basically, the state of Maryland is interpreting an athletic conference as a "State Entity" and as such, they can't make a claim against a different state.
No.
We aren't legal scholars, but how can a state government recognize an athletic conference or any other business as a representative of a particular state? Any of you legal types out there able to explain this?
The question is whether this was Maryland's plan to get out of the buyout? If it was, it seems kind of lame...and flimsy.
We REALLY hope that the State of Maryland and the school lose and are forced to pay this. Because if nothing else, it might make some other money hungry schools think twice before bailing out of the conference they are in just because ESPN says they can get more TV money. (Did I just say that?)
Exit fees, especially ones at 50 million, are illegal. How do you justify that Big 10 and SEC not having an exit fee while the ACC does???
ReplyDeleteNo UMD will win this and is in the right to do so.