The National Basketball Association formally charged Donald Sterling on Monday and informed him that they are moving forward in an attempt to relieve him of ownership rights of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Sterling will have until May 27 to respond to the charges and then will also have an opportunity to go before the NBA's board of governors meeting on June 3, reports CNN. To revoke his ownership rights and force a sale, three-quarters of NBA owners will need to vote in favor of the charges.
The league said in a statement that Sterling's racist comments made to his girlfriend V. Stiviano in April went against their attempts to make the sport one of diversity, according to the Los Angeles Times. His actions were also damaging to the NBA's relationship to fans, players, sponsors and others.
The league also noted that Sterling's "false and misleading press statement" commenting on the matter were also grounds for revocation of ownership rights.
The move to strip Sterling of ownership comes just a few days after he revealed that he would not be paying the $2.5 million fine Commissioner Adam Silver slapped him with. Sterling's attorney Maxwell Blecher said that his client's comments do not deserve "any punishment at all."