WILMINGTON, Delaware A Florida judge on Friday rejected a request by Walt Disney Co to dismiss a lawsuit by an oversight district, a move that could make it harder for the entertainment giant to pursue its own case against Governor Ron DeSantis as part of a yearlong feud.

The ruling allows the oversight district to pursue its case that seeks to void "backroom deals" favorable to Disney that were struck with a prior district board earlier this year. If those deals were voided, the district has said it would nearly wipe out Disney's federal case against DeSantis.

(Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; editing by Deepa Babington)