A district court denied motions to dismiss a landowner's tort and state-law claims against the owner of a gasoline station for damages stemming from methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) contamination of its drinking water wells. The owner has suffered a cognizable injury. A reasonable jury could find ...

The court holds that the U.S. Forest Service did not violate the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by classifying certain units of a proposed timber sale as roaded. Because the Forest Service considers the challenged units as roaded, the studies and research that formed the basis for the envi...

The court holds that oil and gas lessees failed to state a claim under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act's (OCSLA's) citizen suit provision when they challenged the U.S. Department of the Interior's (DOI's) determination that transportation costs are not deductible under the royalty provisions o...

The court holds that a state environmental agency that denied a landowner's request for setback variances from wetlands regulations to build a single-family home on his property did not effect an unconstitutional taking. The court first holds that any claim the landowner had that his application was...

The court holds that restrictions on a road paving contractor's land use permit for locating a temporary asphalt plant at a gravel pit do not violate the contractor's substantive due process and equal protection rights, or unduly interfere with interstate commerce. The court first holds that the sub...

The court upholds the U.S. Forest Service's decision to grant a cellular phone company a special use permit for a telecommunications facility on Dead Indian Mountain in the Fremont National Forest, Oregon. The court first holds that the Forest Service's decision to grant the permit was not arbitrary...

The court holds that the discretionary function exception of the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) shields the government from liability for a contractor's negligence in disposing of wastes removed from two naval bases in the Jacksonville, Florida, area. The residents of a neighborhood surrounding a la...

The court holds that a consent judgment under which the United States acquired title to Horn Island in the Gulf of Mexico is null and void. Plaintiff-appellants had contracted to sell a portion of the island to the United States, which sought it as part of a proposed national park. The United States...

The court holds that, as applied to industrial truck manufacturers and distributors, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA's) hazard communication standard (HCS) preempt enforcement of the occupational warning requirements unde...

The Court affirms a Third Circuit decision that a class-action certification seeking settlement of current and future asbestos-related claims failed to satisfy the requirements of Fed. R. Civ. P. 23. The Court first notes that the Third Circuit should have acknowledged that settlement is relevant to...