Hawk's Landing Legal Update: Record Filed

July 29 Update: As we expected, the Court approved our motion for an enlargement of time. The Court considered our motion and David Weekley’s objection and found that our motion was made for good cause.

We now have until August 17 to file the remaining documents missing from the record. Our attorneys are actively working with the Town of Brownsburg’s counsel to accomplish this.

On July 27, our attorneys filed the administrative record with the Court, along with the hearing transcripts. However, they also informed the Court that the record remains incomplete because documents required by Indiana law are still missing.

This wasn't because we delayed or failed to act. Quite the opposite.

Our legal team requested the Plan Commission record back in March. After receiving an initial version, they spent weeks reviewing more than 1,000 pages and identified numerous missing documents. They notified the Plan Commission's attorneys on July 2, followed up again on July 20, and received a supplemental record on July 23. After reviewing those additional materials, our attorneys determined that documents referenced, relied upon, and considered by the Plan Commission were still absent from the official record.

Those documents are important. The administrative record is the foundation of a judicial review case. It should contain the materials that were before the Plan Commission when it made its decision. Our attorneys are continuing to work with the Plan Commission to have those documents included so the Court has a complete record to review. We have also asked the Court to grant a brief extension so the complete record can be finalized, a request that the Plan Commission's counsel does not oppose.

Unfortunately, instead of allowing that process to continue, David Weekley Homes objected to our request for this extension. Their filing argued that we had possessed the record for more than seven weeks and lacked good cause for requesting additional time. Our attorneys responded forcefully.

They explained that this characterization is "unequivocally false." What we received on June 4 was an initial draft that required extensive review. After identifying missing materials, our attorneys repeatedly worked with the Plan Commission to supplement the record. Even after additional documents were produced on July 23, important materials were still missing.

Rather than risk any claim that we had failed to meet our obligations, our attorneys filed the incomplete record by the July 27 deadline while simultaneously asking the Court for additional time to complete it.

Our response also notes that counsel for David Weekley Homes did not respond to repeated phone calls and emails attempting to explain why the extension was necessary before filing their objection. Additionally, while David Weekley Homes argued that a three-week extension would cause prejudice, our attorneys noted that no briefing schedule had been established and that their proposed schedule—circulated nearly two months earlier—had received no response from David Weekley Homes.

In short:

• We met the Court's July 27 deadline.

• The administrative record has been filed.

• Our attorneys have demonstrated that the record is still incomplete and are working to ensure all required documents are included before the case moves forward.

We remain confident that the Court should review a complete and accurate record—not an incomplete one. We'll continue providing updates as the Court rules on our request and the case proceeds to the briefing stage. Watch this space.