Ex parte City of Fairhope Planning Commission and City of Fairhope (Developer's Negligence Claim Over Denied Apartment Applications Barred by Immunity)

The Alabama Supreme Court granted a writ of mandamus on October 16, 2026, directing a Baldwin County circuit court to enter judgment for the City of Fairhope and its Planning Commission on developer 68V BTR Holdings, LLC's negligence claim over the denial of two apartment-complex applications, holding that both the volunteer Commission members and the city employees who advised them are immune from suit. The ruling leaves 68V's separate arbitrary-and-capricious and substantive-due-process claims against the City and Commission pending in the trial court.

Why it matters

The decision confirms that a negligence claim against a city or its planning commission over a development denial runs into both municipal immunity and, for volunteer board members, the Volunteer Service Act's additional layer of protection, even where a developer alleges the denial was made in bad faith. Developers who believe a planning body acted with an improper motive are generally better served pursuing a direct mandamus action or administrative appeal of the denial itself rather than a tort claim against the decisionmakers.

Case timeline · 3 entries Latest: October 16, 2026 — Alabama Supreme Court grants mandamus, holding the City and Planning Commission immune from the negligence claim

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