On March 1, 2019, Judge Eugene Griffith in the Court of Common Pleas, Ninth Judicial Circuit of South Carolina, issued an order in the lawsuit National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States and the City of Charleston v. City of North Charleston challenging the proposed annexation by North Charleston of a one-acre parcel of land that is located across and just down the road from Drayton Hall, a National Trust Historic Site, and within the Ashley River Historic District. The Court found that the National Trust and the City of Charleston did not have standing to challenge the annexation, but also held that, if the standing is overturned, the one-acre annexation was invalid. The Court also did not grant the National Trust’s motions to dismiss the counterclaims filed by the Whitfield Company against the National Trust. The National Trust is considering its options at this time.