RES JUDICATA – Lat. “the thing has been decided” The principle that a final judgment of a competent court is conclusive upon the parties in any subsequent litigation involving the same cause of action.
A Franklin, Ky., Circuit Court judge sided with a devilishly clever argument and ruled in favor of Duke University yesterday in a breach of contract lawsuit brought forth by the University of Louisville. U of L sued Duke for $450,000 after the Blue Devils backed out of a four-game football contract with three dates remaining. The contract called for a penalty of $150,000 per game if a date with a “team of similar stature” could not be arranged.
Duke’s lawyers argued the Blue Devils, which have a record of 6-45 over the past five seasons, were so bad that any team would be a suitable replacement.
Judge Phillip J. Shepherd agreed with Duke’s lawyers — the football team is so bad that any replacement would do:
“At oral argument, Duke (with a candor perhaps more attributable to good legal strategy than to institutional modesty) persuasively asserted that this is a threshold that could not be any lower. Duke’s argument on this point cannot be reasonably disputed by Louisville.”
Kentucky courts interpret contract terms “according to their plain and ordinary meaning” barring any ambiguity. According to Shepherd, finding a suitable replacement literally meant any NCAA Division I team would suffice – including those in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly known as Division I-AA.)
Dook sucks.
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