Supreme Court of Alabama
Dekalb County Lp Gas Company, Inc. v. Suburban Gas, Inc. Coosa Valley Electric Cooperative, Inc., and Coosa Valley…
November 25, 1998729 So. 2d 270
Summary
The Supreme Court of Alabama reversed a Shelby Circuit Court summary judgment that had declared unlawful Coosa Valley Electric Cooperative's acquisition of 100% of the stock of DeKalb County LP Gas Company and had ordered divestiture to no more than 49% of that stock. The court held that the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act did not apply because the LP Gas Board's acceptance of updated corporate filings involved no 'contested case,' that Suburban Gas had standing as a member of the cooperative to bring a direct ultra vires challenge under § 10-2B-3.04(b)(1), and that § 37-6-3(9)'s plain language authorized the cooperative to acquire stock in corporations regardless of the targets' purposes. The case was remanded for further proceedings.