In Luke v. Cataldi, 593 Pa. 461, 932 A.2d 45 (2007), neighboring landowners did not appeal the 2002 grant of a conditional use permit which allowed coal mining operations. A year later, the neighboring landowners challenged the permits through a mandamus action in the trial court. The basis for mandamus relief was an alleged lack of notice and hearing by the governing body before the conditional use was approved. The trial court dismissed the mandamus action as beyond the 30-day appeal period for decisions. A much-troubled Commonwealth Court ultimately affirmed. Our Supreme Court extended the void ab initio doctrine to procedurally defective conditional use applications, holding that the township's failure to comply with the MPC public notice requirement for considering a conditional use application rendered a subsequent conditional use permit void ab initio. The Court held that the grant of a conditional use permit could be nullified because the procedures for its grant had not been followed. In Luke, the township failed to conduct a public hearing on the conditional use permit sought by a mining company, and this public hearing was mandated by the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (MPC). Neighboring landowners argued that because the township never gave them notice of its intention to act on the permit application, as required by the MPC, they were denied an opportunity to participate in the hearing on the permit application in violation of due process. The Supreme Court agreed. Accordingly, it held that the neighboring landowners' complaint stated a basis for their request to have the permits voided ab initio, and remanded the matter for a hearing on the merits.