State v. Arizona Board of Regents – Supreme Court of Arizona holds that Attorney General had authority to bring quo warranto action against Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) alleging that portion of agreement between ABOR and operator of hotels to build and operate hotel and conference center on ABOR’s property that allowed operator to lease the hotel and conference center property from ABOR for 60 years, and to purchase property from ABOR at end of lease term for a nominal fee, was not for benefit of state, as required by statute governing ABOR’s authority, but rather for the benefit and use of operator, and that lease violated non-delegation doctrine, where claim was based on allegation that ABOR unlawfully exercised its franchise.
In re Flint Water Cases – In case brought against bond underwriters in connection with the Flint water crisis, District Court dismisses plaintiffs’ claims for conspiracy and negligence, finding no relationship between underwriters and citizens sufficient to create a duty of care.
And finally, Not In My Boneyard is brought to us this week by McLoughlin v. Planning and Zoning Commission of Town of Bethel, in which Mono-Crete – a producer of precast concrete burial vaults – proposed to augment its existing facilities with a crematory. (Just so we’re all on the same page here, a “creamery” is a faux old-timey place to purchase archaic dairy treats, while a crematory is, uh, something else entirely…) Should you ever wish to witness a hot time in the old Zoning & Planning Department, we highly recommend adding immolation to the agenda. Favorite comment: “he does not want his business near any emotion or psychological feelings ….” Favorite publication cited: Directional Heterogeneity of Environmental Disamenities: The Impact of Crematory Operations on Adjacent Residential Values. Perhaps Mono-Crete should consider the manufacture of coffee-themed urns? It is the most modestly-priced receptacle.

Bond Case Briefs