WSU and OSU have seen their first win in court, as a conference board meeting that was planned for Wednesday has been halted as the Whitman County Superior Court hears the rest of the two remaining member’s case against the departees.

The weekend began with the announcement that WSU and OSU were suing the Pac-12 Conference to control the remaining conference assets and secure sole voting power. Both Cougs and Beavers won their football games, with the litigation to come hanging over everything. Now, on Monday, the weekend has closed with a third victory for Pac-12’s final two schools.

The plaintiffs claimed that only the remaining schools should have the right to vote on conference matters, citing bylaws and precedent set by USC, UCLA and Colorado during their departures. The defendants named were both the Pac-12 itself and conference commissioner George Kliavkoff. Kliavkoff reportedly attempted to call a conference board meeting for Wednesday, spurring the legal action from WSU and OSU.

While the lawsuit has not been won yet, the first important step toward control of the conference has come in the form of a temporary restraining order. This order means that the Pac-12 cannot hold the planned board meeting and cannot make any decisions on the future of the conference until further action is taken by the court. 

Concluding the ruling, Superior Court judge Gary Libey declared that a unanimous decision in writing, such as an employee retention plan, was the only exception. It was quickly agreed to by all parties.

Day-to-day business can continue as before. As far as the future goes, no ruling has been made yet on whether WSU and OSU are correct in their claim that they should be the only voting members of the conference.

WSU President Kirk Schulz shared thoughts on social media after the decision.

“We are very pleased with the court’s decision today. It has always been our view that the future of the Pac-12 should be determined by the remaining members, not by those schools that are leaving,” the post reads. “We look forward to the court putting the question of governance to rest so that Washington State University and Oregon State University can make reasonable and necessary decisions regarding the future of the Pac-12 Conference “

Per Cornell Law, injunctive relief such as this restraining order is typically granted based on the likelihood of the suit’s success based on merit. 

The next step, a preliminary hearing, should be scheduled in the coming weeks.