A Harris County judge was expected to rule after press time last week to decide whether Pinehurst Trail Holdings would be prevented from selling its golf course property while litigation against it is pending.

Atascocita attorney Kimberley Spurlock filed suit against the company May 14 on behalf of a group of neighbors living along the now-defunct course. The plaintiffs hope Judge Robert Schaffer will rule the course cannot be split up and sold for commercial development, as Pinehurst Trail Holdings plans.

The judge’s expected ruling last week stemmed from an Aug. 27 injunction hearing, and would decide only the course’s fate during the litigation, not its ultimate use. A trial date in the case tentatively has been set for March 7.