LOS ANGELES (CN) - The City of Los Angeles illegally granted Clear Channel and CBS exemptions to its billboard laws, while denying the exemptions to competing businesses, Summit Media claims in Superior Court.
The city enacted its off-site sign ordinance in 2000. Clear Channel Outdoor and CBS Outdoor sued in 2002. The city settled with them in 2006, granting them exemptions from its "ban on off-site signs, the Off-Site Sign Inspection Program, and numerous other zoning and building laws regulating off-site signs in Los Angeles. Shortly after signing the Settlement Agreement, CBSO and Clear Channel began undertaking significant modifications of their existing signs, which are otherwise prohibited by the general ban on off-site signs. Meanwhile, the City continued to enforce these laws against Summit and certain other sign companies," the complaint states.
Summit says the settlement agreement is illegal and ultra vires. It wants it enjoined It is represented by Timothy Alger with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart.
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