Indianapolis Colts v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore

741 F.2d 954 (1984)

From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Indianapolis Colts v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore

United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
741 F.2d 954 (1984)

Facts

In 1984, the Indianapolis Colts (Colts) (plaintiff) were contemplating a move from Baltimore to Indianapolis. The Maryland Senate enacted legislation allowing the City of Baltimore to acquire the Colts by eminent domain. Pursuant to such legislation, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore (collectively Baltimore) (defendants) filed a condemnation action against the Colts in a Maryland state court. Having learned about the lawsuit a few days before its filing, the Colts’ owner, Robert Irsay, moved the team to Indianapolis in the middle of the night and signed a lease for the Hoosier Dome with the Capital Improvement Board of Managers of Marion County, Indiana (CIB) (defendant). The CIB lease automatically terminated at the Colts’ discretion if the franchise was acquired by eminent domain. Another lease provision gave CIB a right to find a purchaser for the Colts if Irsay decided to sell. After the Colts arrived in Indianapolis, they filed an interpleader action, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1335, in a federal district court in Indiana, alleging conflicting claims between CIB and Baltimore. The district court enjoined Baltimore from pursuing its condemnation action and proceeding with an action against the NFL designed to keep the Colts in Baltimore. Baltimore appealed the orders of the district court.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Bauer, J.)

Dissent (Coffey, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 804,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials
  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 804,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 804,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership