Plaintiff’s business serves food and alcohol in a commercial district. Plaintiff was granted a special exception to become a “Supper Club” and was allowed to serve alcohol between the hours of 7:00 pm and 5:00 am. But the City later enacted an ordinance which required alcohol sales to end at 3:00 am. Plaintiff sought declaratory relief but later withdrew its lawsuit with prejudice. A year later, plaintiff brought a new action against the defendant seeking relief from the ordinance.
The court remanded the case, however, based on the Pullman abstention doctrine because this case was not appropriate in federal court. The question in the case concerned what effect the City ordinance had on Plaintiff’s business and as such, this would be more appropriate to be heard in state court. The case was remanded and all motions were denied as moot.
Moheb, Inc. v. City of Miami, Fla., 2010 WL 5209259 (S.D.Fla. 12/16/2010)
