Pac-12, Mountain West settle lawsuits over poaching penalty, exit fees

The Pac-12 and Mountain West announced Monday that they have settled lawsuits that began in the fall of 2024 over the movement of five schools in the regional realignment raid that fueled the rebirth of the Pac-12.

The global agreement covers both the poaching penalty suit filed in California by the Pac-12 against the Mountain West over $55 million and the exit fee suit filed in Colorado by three departing Mountain West members (Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State) over roughly $100 million in penalties.

The terms were not disclosed.

A notice of settlement must be filed by June 2 with the court in the Northern District of California.

Both conferences and the departing Mountain West schools issued a joint statement announcing they have “reached an agreement in principle to resolve the pending lawsuits.

“The parties have agreed to stay the lawsuits in California and Colorado while they work to negotiate and finalize the settlement.”

(The statement was issued on behalf of Fresno State and San Diego State even though the two schools were not plaintiffs in the case against the Mountain West.)

The timing of the announced settlement is notable.

In late March, U.S. magistrate judge Susan van Keulen granted the Pac-12’s request and compelled the Mountain West to make communications (e.g., emails) by university presidents available in the discovery process.

A hearing on discovery was scheduled for Tuesday. The long-form version of the settlement is expected to take several weeks.