Federal judge allows Pac-12's lawsuit against Mountain West over poaching fees to go forward

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A federal judge has allowed the Pac-12 Conference's lawsuit against the Mountain West Conference over $55 million in “poaching fees” to go forward.

Northern District of California Senior Judge Claudia Wilken denied the Mountain West's motion to dismiss the case on Tuesday. She set an initial case management conference for Nov. 18.

“The Pac-12 Conference is pleased that the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California denied the Mountain West Conference’s motion to dismiss," the Pac-12 said in a statement. "We will move forward with our case. The ruling allows our antitrust and related claims to proceed. We remain confident in our position and focused on advancing academic excellence, athletic achievement, and the tradition that has defined the Pac-12 for more than a century.”

The conferences failed to reach an agreement by a July deadline for mediation, and the Pac-12 requested the hearing on a pending motion to dismiss.

The Pac-12 and some of its new schools filed lawsuits last year, claiming the poaching clause it agreed to when it signed a scheduling agreement for its football teams for last season was invalid.

The clause called for payments to the Mountain West of $10 million for the first team that left, with the amount growing by $500,000 for every additional team. That was on top of the $17 million plus exit fees that schools were responsible for as part of a different agreement.

The Mountain West said in a statement that its lawyers were reviewing the judge's decision.

Colorado State, Utah State, San Diego State, Fresno State and Boise State are set to leave the Mountain West and join the Pac-12 starting in 2026. The conference added Texas State in June to reach the eight-team minimum to be eligible for an automatic bid for its champion in the College Football Playoff.

Oregon State and Washington State are the only remaining Pac-12 members following an exodus last year that threatened the conference’s future. The two schools reached a scheduling agreement with the Mountain West so they could piece together a football schedule last season.

The Mountain West has added UTEP, Hawaii and Northern Illinois for football starting in 2026.

Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State also filed an updated lawsuit against the Mountain West last month, alleging it improperly withheld millions of dollars and misled them about a plan to accelerate Grand Canyon’s membership.

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