Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan at Detroit.
No. 2:21-cv-12864—Gershwin A. Drain, District Judge.
Argued: June 13, 2023
Decided and Filed: September 7, 2023
Before: GILMAN, BUSH, and READLER, Circuit Judges.
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OPINION
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JOHN K. BUSH, Circuit Judge. Plaintiffs Republic Building Company, Inc. and Michael
Torres sought to develop condominiums at a property acquired from University Builders, Inc.
But there was one problem: they needed rezoning approval from the Charter Township of
Clinton, Michigan (the Township). After a protracted dispute over rezoning, plaintiffs sued the
Township in Michigan state court to gain approval. The state court entered a consent judgment
that dictated the conditions for rezoning the property and completing the project. Years later,
after experiencing several setbacks, plaintiffs sought to amend the consent judgment, but the
Township refused. Plaintiffs then filed this suit in federal district court, alleging several
constitutional violations as well as a breach-of-contract claim. The Township moved to dismiss
for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, which the district court granted, finding plaintiffs’
complaint to be a collateral attack on the consent judgment. Contrary to the district court’s
opinion, it did not lack subject-matter jurisdiction, but dismissal was nevertheless proper for
failure to state a claim based on res judicata. We therefore AFFIRM. |