It will be up to Leon County judge Karen Gievers to decide the cases. The House committee staff subpoenaed Roberts in October for details into the six contracts he signed with Visit Florida to produce six seasons of the show. They say there’s been no accounting of how $11.6 million paid to Roberts was spent or how much money he pocketed from the show.

Roberts’ lawyers have asked the judge to dismiss the subpoena, arguing it’s a political ploy by House Speaker Richard Corcoran and that the financial agreements with the Food Network and Lagasse are trade secrets that cannot be made public.

They filed a response late Wednesday to the House request, reiterating its defense that it cannot divulge information protected under trade secret laws. The response, signed by Tallahassee lawyer Tim Jansen, also said the House Public Integrity and Ethics Committee has yet to explain why it’s pursuing the documents. [READ MORE]