The University of Louisville had a contract with Duke University to play a series of four football games over the course of a few years.
After the first game, Duke pulled out of the series. In response, Louisville sued Duke for $450,000, arguing that the contract between the schools called for a penalty of $150,000 per game, if after a cancellation "a date with a 'team of similar stature' could not be arranged."
Duke's lawyers argued in court that "the Blue Devils, who have a record of 6-45 over the past five seasons, were so bad that any team would be a suitable replacement."
In finding for Duke, the judge observed in his decision,It's a legal strategy that has, one imagines, many other useful applications."At oral argument, Duke (with a candor perhaps more attributable to good legal strategy than to institutional modesty) persuasively asserted that this is a threshold that could not be any lower. Duke's argument on this point cannot be reasonably disputed by Louisville."
