Quote:
Originally Posted by Wickedson
Don't get me wrong.
Personally I have no pressing desire to try and drain MU and A&M for as much as possible. It's not like I myself would see a dime.
The schools that did not want to be apart of the schools they've been associated with for over 100 years have left. As a fan I'm interested in competing with schools that want to be apart of what my school represents.
Did I think that this would mean having to compete with better football programs? Not really. But it is what it is. You're right, a new schedule is in place and it is time for all to move on.
And yes, I understand that Missouri will be paying something. It's a rule in the by laws of the conference.
And no, this does not mean that the Big 12 conference has won some legal battle once a check is written (or payments are withheld). However it works out.
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The 'rule' is an attempted liquidated damages provision. Contract law does not allow for punitive provisions in a contract (it encourages 'efficient breach'). So for the 'rule' in the bylaws to have legal effect, the conference will have to establish that the damages of a team leaving the conference are difficult to ascertain and that the liquidated damages provision is a reasonable approximation of what those damages would be (i.e.
not a penalty provision).
In other words - MU's intent in leaving is absolutely irrelevant unless you're pursuing a tort claim or something, which would be pretty insane as you'll never prove it up. Instead they'll want to proceed on the K claim. Now if MU can establish that the liquidated damages don't approximate the damages that the IIX suffered in Mizzou leaving (i.e. all that nonsense that Neinas, and you, have been spewing about the conference being
stronger without Mizzou), then you're going to have a damn hard time getting those damages awarded. At that point, the damages provision would be read as strictly punitive.
The IIX is going to have to do a hard left and backtrack from their "we're better without Mizzou" if they hope to enforce those terms. And then they'll need to explain how it's 'reasonable' to base the damages on the lost revenue of a television rights deal that wasn't actually altered when Mizzou left.
In other words - in contract law, yeah - you can absolutely "just **** with people and walk away" if the plaintiff isn't actually worse off for your leaving; and if you listen to the hired representative and chief agent of the IIX, they aren't. And no, Missouri hasn't done a stupid thing at all because the law of contracts encourages efficient breach.
Again - just stop.