Dusseau – Judicial Review of Zoning Cases
Dusseau v. Metro. Dade County, 794 So. 2d 1270 (Fla.2001).
The Dusseau decision from the Florida Supreme Court remains one of the most comprehensive explanations of the role of the appellate court when it comes to appellate review of local government’s land use decision-making.
The decision has been cited nearly 300 times in judicial decisions, administrative decisions, practice guides, scholarship.
The decision represents a master-class in the two-tiered system of certiorari review that Florida courts use to review local government land use decisions.
In Dusseau, the Florida Supreme Court cautioned that when it comes to review of zoning decisions, “the circuit court has no training or experience – and is inherently unsuited – to sit as a roving “super agency” with plenary oversight in such matters.”
Most notably, the Florida Supreme Court explained the contours of the “competent substantial element” prong of the circuit court’s first-tier certiorari review this way:
“We reiterate that the “competent substantial evidence” standard cannot be used by a reviewing court as a mechanism for exerting covert control over the policy decisions and factual findings of the local agency. Rather, this standard requires the reviewing court to defer to the agency’s superior technical expertise and special vantage point in such matters. The issue before the court is not whether the agency’s decision is the “best” decision or the “right” decision or even a “wise” decision, for these are technical and policy-based determinations properly within the purview of the agency.”