Pickleball court raises question about city inspections

Question: My wife and I love pickleball. We got approval from Tempe to build a pickleball court in the side yard next to our home. The city inspector came out twice and said everything was fine. Once we started playing pickleball, however, our neighbors went ballistic. They complained to the city, and the city said the pickleball court must be moved four feet closer to our home. We did everything right and are now being punished. Do we have a claim against Tempe for the cost of moving our pickleball court four feet?

Answer: Probably not. Under English common law, there was immunity from liability for all governmental actions because the ‘King can do no wrong.’ This immunity is no longer as broad. For example, there could be liability if the city inspector acted in bad faith, e.g., took a bribe, or was grossly negligent, e.g., intentionally didn’t take measurements.