A 3-judge Ventura County Superior Court appeals panel struck down the eviction of the Fillmore and Western Railway by the Ventura County Transportation Commission who owns the tracks the railway operates on.

The panel released the decision on Tuesday, September 22, 2015. It ruled that the VCTC used an incorrect legal procedure to evict the railway, and the judge who upheld the eviction error in backing the eviction based on the incorrect legal procedure.

It remains to be seen if VCTC will appeal this ruling to a higher court, or return to the trial court to seek a legal eviction.

The VCTC filed a lawsuit in March 2014 against the Railway when they ignored the agency’s demand to stop running the train operation. The Railway countersued, claiming the Commission terminated its 20-year lease wrongly. The popular tourist train remains in operation for now.