(Reuters) - A&nbsp;federal&nbsp;judge&nbsp;on Thursday disqualified&nbsp;himself&nbsp;from&nbsp;hearing&nbsp;Walt&nbsp;Disney&nbsp;Co's &lt;DIS.N&gt; civil suit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and other state officials, citing a small financial interest in the company by a relative.
Disney&nbsp;sued DeSantis in late April, asking a court to overturn state efforts to control the&nbsp;Disney&nbsp;World theme park, intensifying a battle between the global entertainment giant and the governor, who is now seeking the Republican presidential nomination.
U.S. District&nbsp;Judge&nbsp;Mark Walker wrote that the relative's financial interest, 30 shares of&nbsp;Disney&nbsp;stock, could be affected by the outcome of the proceeding.
"Even though I believe it is unlikely that these proceedings will have a substantial effect on the Walt&nbsp;Disney&nbsp;Company, I choose to err on the side of caution -- which here, is also the side of judicial integrity -- and disqualify myself," Walker wrote.
Walker denied DeSantis' motion that he disqualify&nbsp;himself&nbsp;because of questions about his impartiality. Walker said the motion lacked merit and that it amounted to "nothing more than rank&nbsp;judge-shopping."
The&nbsp;judge, who was appointed by former Democratic President Barack Obama, has struck down several laws that defined DeSantis' conservative political agenda, including statutes that sought to limit the speech of college professors, curtailed protests and restricted voting access.
In its&nbsp;lawsuit,&nbsp;Disney&nbsp;accused DeSantis and his supporters of illegally using the state government to punish a company for voicing an opinion that should be protected by free-speech rights.
DeSantis has argued that&nbsp;Disney, which employs roughly 75,000 people in Florida, had been enjoying unfair advantages for decades.
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(Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski; Editing by Jacqueline Wong, Gerry Doyleand Leslie Adler)

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Federal judge disqualifies himself from hearing Disney lawsuit