Town of Ellettsville, Indiana Plan Commission and Richland Convenience Store Partners, LLC v. Joseph v. DeSpirito, 87 N.E.3d 9

Richland Convenience Store Partners sought a plat amendment from the Town of Ellettsville Plan Commission to relocate a utility easement on its property.
Neighbor Joseph V. DeSpirito, whose property benefited from the easement, objected; the Commission approved Richland’s request over his objection.
DeSpirito sued for judicial review, declaratory relief, damages (including attorney’s fees), and preliminary and permanent injunctive relief; an agreed preliminary injunction barred Richland from acting on the Commission’s decision.
The trial court granted DeSpirito summary judgment on the Commission’s approval, remanded with instructions to dismiss the plat amendment request unless DeSpirito joined, and left the preliminary injunction in place; it did not resolve damages or a permanent injunction.
Appellants (Richland and the Commission) appealed; the Court of Appeals considered the merits despite questioning whether a final, appealable judgment existed and reversed the trial court.
The Indiana Supreme Court granted transfer and held the record lacked a final judgment; it remanded to the trial court to consider entering a Rule 54(B)/Trial Rule 56(C) certification within 90 days so appellate jurisdiction could be secure.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the trial court entered a final, appealable judgment	DeSpirito: Order resolving Commission decision is appealable	Appellants: Order is final enough to appeal; Court of Appeals allowed appeal	Not final: Order left injunction and damages unresolved and lacked a written Rule 54(B)/56(C) certification
Whether premature notices of appeal deprived appellate court jurisdiction	DeSpirito: Premature appeal should be dismissed	Appellants: D.J. allows consideration of premature appeals under circumstances	D.J. did not eliminate jurisdictional requirements; premature appeal here not supported because no final judgment existed
Whether the Commission erred in approving the easement relocation (merits)	DeSpirito: Commission’s approval was erroneous	Appellants: Commission’s decision should stand	Supreme Court did not decide merits; remanded to trial court for jurisdictional cure before appellate review
Appropriate appellate remedy when jurisdictional defect exists	DeSpirito: Proceed no further until final judgment	Appellants: Court of Appeals could reach merits for efficiency	Court: In most cases defect warrants dismissal; but here remand for trial court to consider Rule 54(B)/56(C) certification within 90 days for judicial economy

In re D.J., 68 N.E.3d 574 (Ind. 2017) (explaining final judgment and clerk’s notice of completion of clerk’s record govern appellate jurisdiction)
In re Paternity of C.J.A., 12 N.E.3d 876 (Ind. 2014) (noting dismissal is typical when appellate jurisdiction is lacking)
Ramsey v. Moore, 959 N.E.2d 246 (Ind. 2012) (same: appeals generally dismissed when jurisdictional prerequisites are unmet)