Today was the latest, and probably last attempt for bitter third parties to stop Ultra Music Festival from taking place in 2 weeks at Miami’s Virginia Key. After what turned out to be a nail-biting 2+ hours, Judge Ruiz in Miami has ruled that neither Brickell Homeowners Association nor Mullin have standing to bring an action to void the license agreement between Miami and Ultra. So let’s break it down a bit.
This latest lawsuit is brought by Brickell Homeowners Association and an individual claiming that Miami is violating its charter. They claim it violated its charter by allowing Ultra a license to hold the festival where a lease should be required. If a lease is required, competitive bidding would have to be held, which it was not in this case.
First off the Judge was clear in ruling that the Brickell Homeowners Association did not have standing to bring this motion for a temporary injunction. However the question became dicier for the individual, Mullin. There was a long discussion about licenses vs leases and what injury Mullin suffered. Mullin’s attorney said the injury was simply Miami’s violation of its charter.
Things got tense enough to the point where Ultra’s attorneys argued that granting the injunction cause significant harm at the 11th hour right before people boarded flights to Miami, since it would cancel the festival.
In the end, the Judge found that Miami’s charter is silent on whether injury must be suffered by an individual to bring an action such as this, but he did not rule as to whether one is required or not. The attorney trying to stop Ultra said he would find another Plaintiff who will allege a true injury in the event the Court ruled in favor of Miami, and this is likely to be appealed. However, Ultra is once again victorious and will continue site build out for Virginia Key. For the full play by play check out Miami Herald Reporter Joey Flechas‘ Twitter thread below.
In Judge Rodolfo Ruiz’s courtroom for a hearing in the Brickell Homeowners Association’s lawsuit against the city of Miami over the city’s licensing agreement with Ultra Music Festival. pic.twitter.com/NxswRg9uB2
— Joey Flechas (@joeflech) March 15, 2019