Statement From Fulton County Attorney R. David Ware Regarding Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals Ruling
on Fulton County Adult Entertainment Ordinance

On Tuesday, February 16, 2010, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in the case of Flanigan’s v. Fulton County, sided with Fulton County regarding the constitutionality of the County’s adult entertainment ordinance.

The case stems from the passage of the County’s 2001 adult entertainment ordinance, which, among other things, forbids alcohol and nude dancing in one establishment. The owners of various adult entertainment businesses sued Fulton County to continue to be able to sell alcohol.

In 2006, the U.S. District Court ruled that Fulton County, when enacting the 2001 ordinance, did not present sufficient evidence to justify the ordinance, given the First Amendment protections afforded to nude dancing as a form of expression.

The decision of the Court of Appeals reversed that District Court opinion, found that the County did have a reasonable basis for passing the 2001 ordinance, and remanded the case back to the District Court to address other legal challenges brought by the Plaintiff but left unresolved by the District Court's 2006 decision.