Title: Asbury Apts. v. Dayton Bd. of Zoning Appeals

State: ohio

Issuer: Ohio Supreme Court

Document:

ASBURY APARTMENTS, JOINT VENTURE; RPS MANAGEMENT, APPELLEE, V. 
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DAYTON BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS ET AL., APPELLANTS. 
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[Cite as Asbury Apts. v. Dayton Bd. of Zoning Appeals (1997), ___ Ohio 
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St.3d ___. 
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Declaratory judgment -- Appeal dismissed for failure to serve Attorney 
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General pursuant to R.C. 2721.12. 
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(No. 95-2495 -- Submitted November 18, 1996 at the Urbana 
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Session -- Decided January 15, 1997.) 
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APPEAL from the Court of Appeals for Montgomery County, No. 
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15109. 
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__________ 
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Gary L. Froelich, for appellee. 
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J. Anthony Sawyer, Director of Law, and Steven R. Milby, Senior City 
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Attorney, for appellants Dayton Board of Zoning Appeals and city of 
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Dayton. 
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__________ 
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Appellee challenged the constitutionality of Dayton Revised Code of 
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General Ordinances 150.128(E), but failed to serve the Attorney General 
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pursuant to R.C. 2721.12.  When a statute or municipal ordinance is 
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challenged in a declaratory judgment action, the failure to serve the 
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Attorney General is a jurisdictional defect that can be raised at any time; 
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therefore, because the courts below lacked jurisdiction, we vacate the 
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judgments of the trial court and the court of appeals, and we dismiss this 
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appeal. 
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MOYER, C.J., DOUGLAS, RESNICK, F.E. SWEENEY, PFEIFER, COOK and 
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STRATTON, JJ., concur. 
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