Invercargill City Council is being sued over the collapse of Stadium Southland.
The roof of the multi-purpose stadium in the city collapsed under heavy snow in September last year. A report found engineering faults and poor workmanship were to blame.
Council chief executive Richard King says it was served with High Court proceedings on Wednesday.
The court action is being taken by NZI Insurance on behalf of the Southland Indoor Leisure Centre Charitable Trust, which is claiming $27 million from the council and engineer involved in the stadium's construction.
NZI says the court action is a normal procedure, given the situation.
The insurer says it is necessary to protect its right to recover payments if the collapse happened due to negligence, which its experts are still considering based on the facts.
The insurer says the failure of the Stadium Southland roof raises complex engineering and legal issues.
The council says it will defend any claim made against it.