The court holds that the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), in requiring the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to promulgate national primary drinking water regulations, is a valid exercise of power under the U.S. Commerce Clause. Petitioners argued that the SDWA exceeds the federal government...

The court upholds the dismissal of a property owner's inverse condemnation action against the state of Rhode Island for acquiring a portion of his property in 1975 by adverse possession. Because the owner failed to seek compensation through the state court, he forfeited his federal claim. Adequate s...

The court affirms a district court decision that New York Air Pollution Mitigation Law §66-k is preempted by the Clean Air Act (CAA) Title IV cap-and-trade system and violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Section 66-k requires the assessment of an air pollution mitigation offs...

The court holds that §21 of Article XVII to the South Dakota Constitution, which prohibits corporations or syndicates from acquiring or obtaining an interest in land used for farming and from otherwise engaging in farming in South Dakota, violates the dormant U.S. Commerce Clause of the U.S. Co...

The court vacates and remands a trial court holding that increased stormwater drainage from the construction of a U.S. Postal Service facility in West Virginia did not constitute a taking of a neighboring mall owner's property. The trial court held that no taking occurred because the owner failed to...

A California appellate court upheld the dismissal of a landowner's inverse condemnation claim against California in which it sought to avoid the effect of an irrevocable offer to dedicate land for public use. The dedication was made by a prior owner of the land in 1983 as a condition of a permit to ...

The Ninth Circuit reversed a lower court decision to find a possible equal protection violation when a state water quality control board's overzealous regulation of a ski resort's water discharges may have been motivated by personal animus, but affirmed the decision on all remaining claims. When the...

The Federal Circuit reversed a lower court decision that a commercial fishing company suffered a taking when its fishing permits were revoked under 1997 and 1998 Appropriations Acts. The Appropriations Acts cancelled the company's existing permits and authorization letter and prevented any further p...

The Third Circuit upheld a district court decision that a state wildlife and game commission's refusal to exempt a Native American, who owns black bears for religious purposes, from a permit fee violates the First Amendment's Free Exercise Clause. The permitting scheme is subject to strict scrutiny....

The Ninth Circuit upheld the dismissal of a company's complaint alleging that Arizona state officials' policy against using materials mined from Woodruff Butte in state construction projects violates the company's constitutional rights. The Establishment Clause does not bar the government from prote...