ASU seeks to dismiss Miami’s lawsuit

Arkansas State University filed a motion Monday in Miami-Dade County in Florida to dismiss the University of Miami’s lawsuit in favor of its own lawsuit.

Miami sought to dismiss ASU’s lawsuit March 20 in Craighead County.

Both universities filed lawsuits over a dispute regarding their canceled football game Sept. 9 due to Hurricane Irma.

ASU’s motion to dismiss, which was received by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Wednesday, stated that there is “simply no connection between Miami’s decision to cancel Game 2 [of the 2017 season at Arkansas State] and this forum.”

“It [Miami] seeks to use the declaratory judgment procedure to immunize itself from liability for past business decisions already made,” the motion continued. “It has already canceled Game 2 and refused to pay ASU liquidated damages.

“Miami has not identified any action that it would or could take in the future if the Court were to find that Miami is indeed wrong about its rights under the Game Contract. Its actions in canceling the game and refusing to pay ASU liquidated damages speak much louder than any conclusory, and contradictory, allegation of “doubt” as to the propriety of its actions.

The ASU and Miami athletic departments had signed a contract in May 2013 that stated the Red Wolves would play in Miami during the 2014 season and the Hurricanes would play in Jonesboro during the 2017 season.

The contract stated that if one team did not appear for one of the games, the other would receive a damages payment of $650,000 by Feb. 15, 2018, unless certain circumstances made it “impossible to play the game.”

— Arkansas Democrat-Gazette