The Big East Conference notified (PDF) a U.S. District judge yesterday that it is dropping its lawsuit against Texas Christian University. The Big East accused the school of refusing to pay a fee it purportedly owed after joining a different athletic conference.
The Big East filed suit against the university in June in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In a statement about the notice of dismissal, the conference said that: "TCU has fully discharged its obligations to the Big East and the lawsuit is amicably settled without admission of liability of any party."
The university also issued a statement, saying that: "The University is pleased with the amicable resolution of this matter and glad to have it behind us."
The Big East, in its complaint, said that it entered into discussions with the university about joining the conference in the fall of 2010. That November, the two entered into an agreement that the conference would formally extend an invitation on July 1, 2012.
As part of that agreement, according to the complaint, the university agreed to pay damages of $5 million if it declined the invitation to join the conference. In October 2011, the university announced it would be joining the Big 12 conference instead.
The Big East's lawsuit followed. The case was assigned to U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly.
Covington & Burling partner Benjamin Block represented the Big East. An attorney for the university hadn't entered an appearance in the case before the notice of dismissal.
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