On January 15, 2020, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed a lower court decision that upheld the determination of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) denying a petition to delist the...more
1/16/2020
/ Appeals ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Delisting ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Reversal ,
Rulemaking Process ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
On June 26, 2019, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Kisor v. Wilkie (No. 18-15), a case concerning what level of deference courts owe to federal agency interpretations of their own regulations. The issue before the...more
6/28/2019
/ Administrative Agencies ,
Ambiguous ,
Appeals ,
Auer Deference ,
Kisor v Wilkie ,
Reasonable Interpretations ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Stare Decisis ,
Vacated ,
Veterans' Benefits
On November 27, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an area is eligible to be designated as “critical habitat” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) only if the area is habitat for the relevant threatened or endangered...more
11/30/2018
/ Appeals ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Economic Impact Analysis ,
Endangered Species ,
ESA Listings ,
Judicial Review ,
Private Property ,
SCOTUS ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Weyerhaeuser Company v United States Fish and Wildlife Service
In WildEarth Guardians et al. v. U.S. Department of Justice, Case Nos. 17-16677, 17-16678, 17-16679 (Oct. 23, 2018), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit dismissed plaintiff-appellees case challenging the U.S....more
10/26/2018
/ Appeals ,
Article III ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Jury Instructions ,
Standard of Proof ,
Standing ,
Strict Liability ,
Takings Clause
In a 2-1 decision, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected challenges to the final rule designating critical habitat for the dusky gopher frog under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and National...more
In a three-page memorandum decision, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit dismissed Wild Equity and other groups’ appeal from a lower court decision, dismissing as moot a lawsuit alleging that the City and...more
On November 17, the U.S. Supreme Court denied the petition for writ of certiorari filed by Glenn Colusa Irrigation District and others seeking to overturn a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has granted a motion by appellees to dismiss an appeal pursued by the Natural Resources Defense Council and other organizations from an interim order enjoining one...more