In an en banc decision, the Ninth Circuit, 6-5, affirmed a district court order denying a tribal group's motion for preliminary injunction against the U.S. government's transfer of federal land within Tonto National Forest to a mining company. The land is a site of spiritual value to the Western Apa...
The D.C. Circuit affirmed dismissal of a challenge to two FWS rules that delayed a 2021 proposed rule to reduce the amount of land in the Pacific Northwest designated as critical habitat for the northern spotted owl. A logging group challenged the validity of the rules delaying the effective date of...
The D.C. Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part summary judgment for commercial fishermen in a challenge to an NMFS rule implementing an amendment to a fishery management plan for reef fish resources in the Gulf of Mexico. The fishermen argued the amendment arbitrarily relied on an economic a...
Climate change and invasive species are jeopardizing already endangered and threatened species, prompting the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to finalize its 2023 rule allowing experimental populations to be introduced into habitat outside their historical range, as long as the areas are capable of supporting the experimental population.
A district court granted in part and denied in part a tribe's motion for partial summary judgment in a lawsuit concerning a hydroelectric dam on the Puyallup River in Washington. The tribe argued the dam operator's installation of a temporary rock dam/spillway unlawfully harmed and harassed Chinook ...