Friends of Yamhill County v. Board of Commissioners

• Court: Oregon Court of Appeals
• Area(s) of Law: Civil Law
• Date Filed: 05-25-2016
• Case #: A158505
• Judge(s)/Court Below: Sercombe, P.J. for the Court; Tookey, J., & DeHoog, J.

If a declaratory judgment proceeding is exclusively available through the writ of review process under ORS 34.020, and if it is substantially the same relief as a writ of review, the relief may be denied.

The plaintiffs, Friends of Yamhill County, Carr and Jeanne Biggerstaff, appealed the trail court’s denial of declaratory and injunctive relief against the defendants, Board of Commissioners of Yamhill County, Ralph and Norma Johnson. Plaintiffs asked the Court to reverse the county's decision under Ballot Measure 49, because the county claimed that the Johnsons had vested rights to develop their property. Plaintiffs also filed a petition for a writ of review to make the court review the county’s vesting decision. The review was denied because the relief sought in the declaratory judgment proceeding was exclusively available through the writ of review process under ORS 34.020 and it is substantially the same relief as the petition. The trial court did not commit err by dismissing the declaratory judgment. Affirmed.

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