IN THE SUPREME COURT STATE OF GEORGIA

Supreme Court Case No. S15C0400 Court of Appeals Case No. A14A0762

HIGHWOODS PROPERTIES, INC.,

Petitioner-Appellant,

v.

CITY OF CHAMBLEE, GEORGIA,

Respondent-Appellee.

MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION OF DENIAL OF PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI

ROY E. BARNES ROBERT S. HIGHSMITH JR. State Bar of Georgia No. 039000 State Bar of Georgia No. 352777 The Barnes Law Group, LLC Holland & Knight LLP 31 Atlanta Street Suite 2000 One Atlantic Center Marietta, GA 30060 1201 West Peachtree Street, N.W. (770) 419-8505 Atlanta, Georgia 30309-3453 (404) 817-8500

ANDREA CANTRELL JONES State Bar of Georgia No. 398440

The Galloway Law Group 3500 Lenox Road, N.E.

Suite 760 Atlanta, Georgia 30326

(404) 965-3680

COMES NOW Petitioner, Highwoods Properties, Inc. (Highwoods), and

moves under Supreme Court Rule 27 for reconsideration of the Courts March 2,

2015 order (Order) denying Highwoods Petition for Writ of Certiorari

(Petition). A true and correct copy of the Order is attached hereto as Exhibit 1.

On October 23, 2014, the Court of Appeals affirmed the summary judgment

of the Superior Court of DeKalb County in this case. In so doing, the Court of

Appeals perpetuated two errors, effectively overturning this Courts decisional law

that has stood for over four decades and stripping Georgia cities of annexation

powers delegated to them by the General Assembly. Moreover, the Court of

Appeals error affects more than just the parties to the lawsuit and the numerous

citizens that live and work in the Brookhaven and Chamblee areas. Indeed, the

issues involved in this case are of particular importance to the state as a whole, as

more and more changes occur to Georgia cities and counties as a result of

annexations and legislative municipalization. Given the magnitude of the effect

the Court of Appeals decision may have, Appellants respectfully requests the Court

reconsider its decision to deny review of the Court of Appeals decision in this

matter.

BACKGROUND

On July 1, 2013, Highwoods applied to the City of Brookhaven for

annexation of Century Center under O.C.G.A. 36-36-21, which delegates to

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municipal corporations the General Assemblys power of annexation. On October

8, 2013, the City of Brookhaven City Council voted to annex Century Center into

City of Brookhaven, effective November 1, 2013. See O.C.G.A. 36-36-21, -

2(a). The City of Chamblee also attempted to annex Century Center by way of

House Bill 619, which provided for a referendum on November 5, 2013 that, only

if successful, would annex Century Center effective December 30, 2013.

Litigation ensued over these competing annexation attempts. Highwoods

and City of Brookhaven jointly moved for summary judgment on the grounds that

the City of Brookhaven had appropriately and lawfully annexed Century Center

and that House Bill 619 was not yet effective and was unconstitutional. The

superior court denied these motions for summary judgment and granted summary

judgment in favor of City of Chamblee. The superior court erroneously ordered

that the City of Brookhavens October 8, 2013 vote to annex Century Center,

effective November 1, 2013, was not valid because of the then-pending House Bill

619, which provided for a referendum on November 5, 2013 that, only if

successful, would annex Century Center effective December 30, 2013. On

November 5, 2013, the referendum passed.

On December 19, 2013, the Court of Appeals enjoined the City of Chamblee

from proceeding with annexation of Century Center pending further appellate

proceedings. The Court of Appeals affirmance of summary judgment on October

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23, 2014 preserved that injunction pending this Courts review. The Court of

Appeals affirmance of summary judgment enabled two significant errors to stand.

First, it was error to issue an injunction reversing Brookhavens October 8, 2013

annexation of Century Center based solely on legislation that by its terms would

not take effect until December 30, 2013. Second, it was error to construe House

Bill 619 to both de-annex Century Center out of the City of Brookhaven and annex

it into the City of Chamblee, thereby violating the single subject matter rule of the

Georgia Constitution. To address these errors, Appellant petitioned the Court for

writ of certiorari on November 12, 2014.

ARGUMENT

In 1970, this Court announced that, when [a] municipality exercises the

delegated power [of annexation], it is exercising the legislative power of the

General Assembly. Plantation Pipe Line Co. v. City of Bremen, 227 Ga. 1, 7, 178

S.E.2d 868, 874 (1970) (emphasis added). See also Higdon v. City of Senoia, 273

Ga. 83, 86, 538 S.E.2d 39, 42 (2000). As a result, a citys exercise of its General

Assembly delegated annexation powers is of equal dignity to local annexation

legislation. By denying certiorari, the Court allows this long standing rule, first

announced in Plantation Pipeline, to end not with a bang but a whimper.

Although as the Court of Appeals noted, this is a matter of first impression,

this issue could not be more ripe and relevant in the current political climate, as

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more and more Georgia communities seek annexation and incorporation. There

are currently plans to form no less than six new cities in the counties of DeKalb

and Fulton alone.1 Never before have the rules governing annexation been as

important to the citizens of Georgia as they are today. Consequently, there can be

little doubt that the issues in this case are of great concern, gravity, and importance

to the public, more than satisfying this Courts Rule 40 requirements for the

granting of the writ of certiorari.

Furthermore, the Court of Appeals decision also sets precedent that allows

Georgia courts to make rulings based on pending legislation and laws that have not

yet become effective. If the Court does not address this issue now, such precedent

could have serious due process implications going forward.

CONCLUSION

For the foregoing reasons, this Court should reconsider its March 2, 2015

Order and grant Appellant Highwoods Properties, Inc.s Petition for Writ of

Certiorari.

1 Mark Niesse, All cityhood movements alive at Georgia General Assembly, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Feb. 1, 2015, available at http://news.blog.ajc.com/2015/01/30/all-cityhood-movements-alive-at-georgia-general-assembly/ last accessed March 12, 2015.

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Respectfully submitted this 12th day of March, 2015,

THE BARNES LAW GROUP, LLC /s/ Roy E. Barnes Roy E. Barnes State Bar of Georgia No. 039000 31 Atlanta Street Marietta, GA 30060 (770) 419-8505 (770) 590-8958 (facsimile)

HOLLAND & KNIGHT LLP /s/ Robert S. Highsmith Jr. Robert S. Highsmith Jr. State Bar of Georgia No. 352777 1201 West Peachtree Street Suite 2000 Atlanta, Georgia 30309-3449 404-817-8500 404-881-0470 facsimile GALLOWAY LAW GROUP, LLC /s/ Andrea Cantrell Jones _ Andrea Cantrell Jones State Bar of Georgia No. 398440 3500 Lenox Road, NE Suite 760 Atlanta, GA 30326 (404) 965-3680 Attorneys for Appellant Highwoods Properties, Inc.

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IN THE SUPREME COURT STATE OF GEORGIA

Supreme Court Case No. S15C0400 Court of Appeals Case No. A14A0762

HIGHWOODS PROPERTIES, INC.,

Petitioner-Appellant,

v.

CITY OF CHAMBLEE, GEORGIA,

Respondent-Appellee.

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that I have served a true and correct copy of the foregoing

Motion for Reconsideration of Denial of Petition for Writ of Certiorari, along

with a copy of this Certificate of Service, upon counsel for Appellee by statutory

electronic service to:

Robert E. Wilson, Esq. Stephen G. Quinn, Esq. WILSON, MORTON & DOWNS Two Decatur Town Center 125 Clairemont Avenue, Suite 420 Decatur, GA 30030-2551

This 12th day of March, 2015.

HOLLAND & KNIGHT LLP

/s/ Robert S. Highsmith Jr. Robert S. Highsmith Jr. State Bar of Georgia No. 352777

7 #34928758_v2

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA

Clerk's Office, Atlanta

I certify that the above is a true extract from theminutes of the Supreme Court of Georgia.

Witness my signature and the seal of said courthereto affixed the day and year last above written.

SUPREME COURT OF GEORGIA Case No. S15C0400

Atlanta, March 02, 2015

The Honorable Supreme Court met pursuant to adjournment.

The following order was passed.

HIGHWOODS PROPERTIES, INC. v. CITY OF CHAMBLEE

The Supreme Court today denied the petition for certiorari in this case. All the

Justices concur.

Court of Appeals Case No. A14A0762

34928758_2cert denial