Friends of Animals v. Romero
The Second Circuit affirmed denial of a challenge to NPS' approval of a white-tailed deer management plan for the Fire Island National Seashore. An animal rights group argued that NPS violated NEPA because it lacked information about deer movement on the island that was essential to the decisionmaki...
Native Village of Nuiqsut v. Bureau of Land Management
A district court denied a request to invalidate BLM's approval of exploratory drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A). Environmental groups and a Native village first argued that BLM's EA failed to account for significant impacts to caribou and subsistence activities, in violation ...
Upstream Addicks and Barker (Texas) Flood-Control Reservoirs
The Court of Federal Claims held the U.S. government liable for the flooding of homes and businesses near two dams managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Houston during Hurricane Harvey. Property owners argued that the government improperly used their land to retain floodwaters during the hu...
Idaho Conservation League v. U.S. Forest Service
A district court granted in part and denied in part a motion for summary judgment in a challenge to the U.S. Forest Service's approval of a mining company's permit to explore for gold in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest. Environmental groups first argued that the Forest Service violated NEPA by f...
Center for Biological Diversity v. Ross
A district court vacated exempted fishing permits issued by NMFS that allowed two vessels to engage in commercial longline fishing in federal waters off the coast of California for two years. Environmental groups contended that the permits threatened the survival and recovery of Pacific leatherback ...
Sauk Prairie Conservation Alliance v. United States Department of the Interior
The Seventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment for NPS in a lawsuit concerning acceptable activities on land acquired by Wisconsin through the Federal Land to Parks Program for recreational use. An environmental group argued that NPS' approval of three activities at the park—dog training, off-road ...
Citizens for a Healthy Community v. United States Bureau of Land Management
A district court enjoined approved permits and suspended applications for new permits for oil and gas development in Colorado until BLM completes its analysis of reasonably foreseeable indirect impacts. In a previous ruling, the court concluded that BLM had failed to sufficiently explain the scope o...
Animal Legal Defense Fund v. Reynolds
A district court preliminarily enjoined Iowa from enforcing a statute that criminalized undercover investigations of slaughterhouses and other animal facilities. Environmental groups argued that the state statute impermissibly restricted their free speech under the First Amendment because it was a c...
Ministerio Roca Solida, Inc. v. United States
The U.S. Claims Court granted in part and denied in part the U.S. government's motion for summary judgment in a challenge against FWS for rerouting spring waters that had previously flowed through church property into a restoration channel in an effort to save a native fish species. The church argue...