MORGAN COUNTY – Six citizens affiliated with the anti-Rivian movement “No 2 Rivian” scored a massive legal win on Friday. 

Per a 10-page ruling handed down by Morgan County Superior Court Judge Stephen Bradley, plaintiffs Edward Clay, Candace Beam, Alan D. Jenkins, Felton Jenkins III, Deborah Crowe and James Gunn will not have to pay the attorney’s fees for both the State of Georgia and the Joint Development Authority (JDA), which consists of four counties, including Newton.

The six plaintiffs originally sued the State, JDA and Morgan County over the proposed Rivian project in Stanton Springs. A similar suit was filed in Fulton County.

In the suit, the group claimed that the construction efforts from Rivian are “continuing to cause disruptions to their land,” and that Rivian could not move forward in compliance with Morgan County zoning ordinances. However, this case was dismissed by Bradley, with the notion that state-owned property is not subject to local ordinances.

This led to a motion from the State and JDA, demanding that the plaintiffs cover $337,704.18 in legal fees. In the filing, the defendants called the previous suit "frivolous."

A three-hour hearing commenced on Aug. 13, which included testimony from both sides. However, Bradley ultimately sided with the plaintiffs, disagreeing with the state and JDA’s sentiment.

“This Court finds this position to be a legitimate challenge to whether the State and JDA’s non-conforming use could be restricted by local laws,” Bradley wrote in the filing. “Neither the first nor the second suit [in Fulton County] filed by the plaintiffs were based on bad faith or were short of justiciable issue… There was a very real chance that a court could decide in the plaintiff's favor.”

Bradley also argued that awarding the defendants fees in this case could create a dangerous precedent.

“Nonetheless, no truly aggrieved citizen should be prohibited from suing to test the legality or constitutionality of the government’s claims, and any precedent that could allow political actions and costs to be off-loaded to complaining litigants would be untenable,” Bradley wrote.

Though several members of No 2 Rivian took to social media to celebrate the decision, there has been no official statement made from the group as of this writing.

Moving forward, the JDA says it is prepared to progress with the Rivian project as planned, starting with the groundbreaking this coming Tuesday.

“Next week’s groundbreaking marks the beginning of a generational project that will bring long-term economic opportunity to the region and the State of Georgia,” read a Sept. 12 joint statement from the JDA and the Georgia Department of Economic Development. “The Courts have consistently ruled in favor of the State and JDA, and this ruling doesn’t change the status of the Rivian project. Together, we are focused on the future and delivering for Georgia taxpayers.”

Currently, there is a similar ongoing legal battle in Fulton County in which the state is seeking to recoup $200,000 in legal fees. That case is pending.

Rivian, which is not a party in either suit, is preparing to move forward with the Stanton Springs site as planned. After securing a $6.6 billion federal loan from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing, the company is expected to start vertical construction efforts in 2026 and production of consumer vehicles will then begin in 2028, according to a January news release