Lima One Capital, LLC v. City of Birmingham

Summary

The Supreme Court of Alabama reversed a Jefferson Circuit Court order directing the complete demolition of a dilapidated nine-building apartment complex and assessing the demolition costs against the property's mortgagee, Lima One Capital, LLC. Although the proceeding was noticed, briefed, and heard as a preliminary-injunction matter under a likelihood-of-success-on-the-merits standard, the trial court's order granted the City the ultimate relief it sought, making it a de facto permanent injunction. Applying de novo review, the court held that Rule 65(a)(2), Ala. R. Civ. P., required notice to the parties before the preliminary-injunction hearing could be treated as a final adjudication on the merits, and Lima One received no such notice. The court reversed and remanded for further proceedings.