DeKalb court throws out verdict against Brookhaven’s Mayor, City Manager
Brookhaven, GA, Sept. 28, 2023 – Ten months after an Appeals Court overturned a verdict against the City of Brookhaven, a DeKalb Superior Court Judge vacated the judgement against Mayor John Ernst and City Manager Christian Sigman in an order for a new trial, following the Court of Appeal’s reversal of the verdict.
The City’s appeal was based upon a frivolous complaint filed by The Ardent Companies LLC (Ardent) and others in March 2018 in DeKalb Superior Court where Ardent, the developer, complained that the City would not abandon a road, thus making it difficult to develop a townhome community on Bramblewood Drive. In Dec. 2022, the Georgia Court of Appeals agreed that attorneys for Ardent failed to prove essential elements of their claims against the City, and that the City of Brookhaven did not waive sovereign immunity.
In its unanimous ruling, the Court of Appeals vacated the trial court’s decision which incorrectly allowed the case to proceed on specific claims and remanded the case back to the trial court with direction. DeKalb Superior Court Judge Tangela Barrie ordered a new trial, which vacates the judgment against Mayor Ernst and City Manager Sigman.
“After hearing the arguments of counsel and reviewing the trial’s transcripts, this Court agrees with and follows the rationale as articulated by Brookhaven’s counsel at the May 24th hearing,” Barrie wrote in her Sept. 22 order.
“It has been a long, arduous ordeal, not only for me, but for my whole family. They should never have been subjected to this pejorative verdict and judgment,” said Mayor John Ernst. “I make no apologies that I refused to compromise the City or its residents to the whims of an overzealous and unscrupulous developer. I am grateful that this is behind us now and we are finally vindicated in this matter.”
“I hope this ruling dispels the widespread rumors and innuendo in the community that were caused during and after this lawsuit. As I’ve always said, we were never doing anything other than what we are supposed to be doing, which is protecting the interests and assets of the taxpayers,” said City Manager Christian Sigman. “I’m pleased that this matter is resolved in the City’s favor.”
"Judge Barrie's ruling is another positive step towards the resolution of this unfounded lawsuit. A private developer cannot force a City to abandon property for the developer’s financial gain. This ruling shows our justice system is working as it should," said City Attorney Jeremy Berry.
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