LSU can play RJ Luis Jr. during the period covered by the October 28 order, according to accounts of the ruling by ESPN and the Associated Press. The order protects LSU from a conference penalty for using him and bars LSU from relying on the Southeastern Conference’s rules to keep him off the floor. Whether Will Wade must put Luis in the lineup is a different question. The public accounts identify no direction from the judge to start Luis or give him a particular number of minutes. Associated Press account of the October 28 order · Myron Medcalf’s ESPN timeline.
November 13 in Baton Rouge
The East Baton Rouge Parish clerk lists Friday, November 13, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. Central, in courtroom 8A before Judge Ronald R. Johnson. The entry is for a preliminary injunction in RJ Luis, Jr. v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, civil suit C-782241. To find it, enter Luis as the last name in the clerk’s public calendar and match the suit number. The case also has a January 11, 2027 setting labeled an exception hearing. Those are separate proceedings. The calendar records the settings as of November 3. East Baton Rouge court calendar.
The November hearing gives the opposing parties an opportunity to be heard before the judge decides whether protection should continue while the case proceeds. A setting alone tells neither side how the judge will rule. The hearing notice, any intervening orders and the signed ruling afterward are the records that establish what happens next. Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure article 3602.
Why the August ruling did not settle the October dispute
Luis played college basketball at Massachusetts and St. John’s, then entered the 2025 NBA draft and signed professional contracts. When he sought another college season at LSU, the NCAA challenged his eligibility. On August 24, the Baton Rouge court granted Luis preliminary relief against the NCAA. That left a practical problem: LSU belonged to a conference with its own rule about former professionals. LSU could face a conference penalty even if the NCAA could no longer stand in his way. Reporting from the August hearing.
On October 27, Luis’s attorneys asked for protection that reached the SEC and LSU. The Associated Press reported that the October 28 ruling prevented the conference from sanctioning LSU for playing Luis and prevented LSU from invoking SEC policy as its reason for declining to play him. The protection was reported to take effect November 3, the date of the season opener, pending the November hearing. This account of the October order rests on contemporaneous reporting. The clerk’s calendar independently establishes the hearing details above. Associated Press account of the October 28 order.
Does eligibility entitle Luis to playing time?
Consider two decisions that could produce the same box score. A coach might hold a player out because the conference has threatened to punish the school. Or the coach might choose another guard for a particular matchup. The first explanation goes directly to the conduct described in the October ruling. Zero minutes, standing alone, cannot tell a court which decision the coach made. A roster records whether the school listed Luis. A box score records whether he took the floor. Neither records the reason. LSU men’s basketball roster.
Luis’s attorney told ESPN he would seek a contempt finding if Wade refused to play Luis. That is the attorney’s stated position. A finding would require the court to identify the command at issue and determine whether the conduct violated it. Article 3605 requires an injunction to describe the restrained acts with reasonable detail and addresses who is bound once they have actual knowledge. Article 3611 allows disobedience of an injunction to be punished as contempt. The signed order matters before anyone attributes a positive duty to the coach. ESPN’s interview with Luis’s lawyer · Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure article 3605 · Article 3611.
Which court file answers which question?
For the exact language binding Luis, the SEC or LSU, request the signed August and October orders, the October application, the return or proof of notice, and any later modification in C-782241. Ask separately for the minutes and any signed order from November 13 once the hearing has taken place. The clerk identifies Civil Suit Records as the custodian of motions and judgments and lists (225) 389-3972 for that department. East Baton Rouge Civil Suit Records.
In Birmingham, The Southeastern Conference v. Louisiana State University, No. 2:26-cv-01586-ACA, concerns the conference’s asserted right to govern its membership and its association with LSU. The SEC’s amended complaint sets out what the conference wants the federal court to declare. To determine what the Baton Rouge judge directed in Luis’s case, use the Louisiana orders. SEC’s filed federal amended complaint · Federal docket.
For another example of how the public record differs from an individual student’s file, see Louisiana university disciplinary records. Browse the other court and public-records guides in Louisiana Legal Research.