In February 2016, the ACLU launched a legal bid to reverse the ban on the grounds that the university had no legitimate basis for banning Ledonne and that the action had been defamatory to his character as there was no evidence that he had ever engaged in any threats of violence, direct or indirect, toward anyone or anything at the university. The action was intended to vindicate Ledonne's First Amendment right to criticize the operations of the university. Both parties eventually entered into mediation before a former federal judge. This resulted in a settlement agreement in which Adams State University would repeal the ban and pay $100,000 in compensation for the ordeal.