Garner v. Archers Glen Partners, Inc., 405 Md. 43

Summary

The Maryland Court of Appeals held that the Court of Special Appeals's discussion of the legal effect of a General Plan in an earlier opinion was dicta and therefore did not establish the law of the case. The court declined to decide the Planning Board's standing because the issue was not preserved and was unnecessary to the outcome. The judgment of the Court of Special Appeals was affirmed, with costs assessed against the petitioners.

Holdings

1. The court declined to decide the standing issue because petitioners failed to raise it in the circuit court and because the issue was unnecessary to the outcome where another party on the same side undisputedly had standing.
2. The discussion in Archers Glen I concerning the legal role of the General Plan did not finally resolve that issue and did not preclude the parties from litigating it on remand; dicta not adopted as a final determination cannot constitute the binding law of the case.
3. The court declined to address whether the General Plan's growth objectives were binding because that issue was not fairly embraced by the questions presented in the petition for certiorari.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Prince George's County Planning Board could participate as a party in judicial review of its decision approving a preliminary residential subdivision plan.
2. Whether the law-of-the-case doctrine applied to a Court of Special Appeals opinion that discussed the legal effect of the General Plan under Maryland Rule 8-131(a) only as guidance and expressly stated that the issue was not definitively resolved.

Disposition

affirmed