The North Carolina Court of Appeals will begin hearing arguments Thursday over a dispute between the Atlantic Coast Conference and the University of Maryland. The school has been a member of the conference since its inception 60 years ago, but announced last fall it plans to depart to the Big Ten Conference. However, prior to that decision, a majority of Presidents from ACC member schools voted to increase the exit fee for departing schools. The amount jumped from about $20 million jumped to $52 million.
Leaders with Maryland oppose the exit fee, saying its unreasonable and amounts to an anti-trust violation. The Greensboro-based conference filed suit in an effort to try to get the school to pay the exit fee before departing. The Court of Appeals will ultimately rule on whether or not the multi-million dollar lawsuit will take place in North Carolina. The University of Maryland officially leaves the ACC on July first of next year.