BrownWinick attorneys Ben Merrill and James White recently obtained summary judgment on behalf of their clients WBC Golf Course, LLC ("WBC") and Mr. Curtis Wahlert, the golf course’s general manager. The case involved allegations that WBC and Mr. Wahlert were not operating the course in a manner consistent with “normal golf course operations,” in violation of the implied restrictive covenants governing the property. The lawsuit was brought by the River Valley Golf Course Homeowners Association ("Association"). These parties have had a long history of litigation dating back to early 2018, when two homeowners belonging to the Association initially filed suit against the Defendants, seeking declaratory relief and an injunction. The 2018 lawsuit involved the interpretation of the Homeowners Association’s restrictive covenants and required the Court to rule on which activities were permissible on the golf course land under those covenants. The first case proceeded to trial. However, apparently dissatisfied with the Court’s ruling in the first case, the Association again filed suit in 2020 asserting nearly identical claims and again seeking a declaratory judgment, injunctive relief, damages, and attorneys’ fees.
After a year of litigation, Defendants filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that all of the Association’s claims were barred by the doctrines of res judicata, claim preclusion, and issue preclusion in the present suit. The District Court agreed and dismissed the case in its entirety. In doing so, the District Court found the same facts and circumstances formed the basis of both lawsuits, and thus the homeowners were prohibited from litigating the issues raised in their lawsuit any further. The Defendants were happy to receive the ruling and are excited to continue to operate their golf course in the best way possible. BrownWinick is extremely pleased to have obtained this favorable result for its clients and to help them avoid an unnecessary and costly trial.
About BrownWinick's Litigation Practice
Our litigation practice covers a broad range of substantive areas including business torts, contracts, unfair competition, intellectual property, including patent, trademark, trade secrets and copyright, securities, employment, healthcare, toxic torts, energy distribution, software design, communications, real estate, environmental, agricultural, corporate and partnership disputes, trust, and estate disputes and construction.
We’ve represented clients in a wide array of civil and commercial matters in state and federal courts, appellate courts, arbitration, mediation, and proceedings before administrative agencies. In addition to the State and Federal District Courts, our attorneys have appeared before the Iowa Supreme Court and Iowa Court of Appeals, numerous federal circuit courts of appeal, including the Eighth and Federal Circuits, the United States Court of Claims, and innumerable state agencies.