Zoning, Planning & Land Use, Civil Procedure

Supreme Court Upholds FCC Authority to Address Wireless Siting

by T. Scott Thompson | Davis Wright Tremaine LLP on 5/21/2013

The Supreme Court today issued its decision in City of Arlington v. FCC—the case challenging the FCC’s 2009 “Shot Clock” declaratory ruling. The Supreme Court affirmed the Fifth Circuit, holding that Chevron deference applies...more

U.S. Supreme Court Allows FCC to Determine its Own Authority - Decision Upholds FCC Time Restrictions on Local Government...

by Matthew K. Schettenhelm | Best Best & Krieger LLP on 5/21/2013

The United States Supreme Court issued its decision in City of Arlington v. FCC, ruling that if an agency has general rulemaking or adjudicative power under a statute, courts must defer to all of the agency’s reasonable...more

Rogers Towers: Municipal Liens vs. Mortgages: Florida’s Supreme Court Rules on Superpriority Issue

by Douglas L. Waldorf, Jr. | Rogers Towers on 5/21/2013

In my April 18th post, I discussed the recent trend of municipalities enacting ordinances designed to give their code enforcement liens “superpriority” over prior-recorded mortgages. Basically, the municipalities have sought...more

The Direction of CEQA “Reform” Under Proposed SB 731: One Step Up and Three Steps Back?

by Arthur F. Coon | Miller Starr Regalia on 5/20/2013

There has been a lot of buzz around proposed SB 731, which is working its way through the State Legislature and will be heard Monday, May 20, in the Senate Appropriations Committee. Notwithstanding the hype and hopes, I think...more

Temporary Regulatory Takings Do Exist in California!

by Katrina Diaz, Bernadette Duran-Brown, Brad Kuhn | Nossaman LLP on 5/17/2013

Given the maze of procedural and substantive hurdles involved, property owners rarely succeed with regulatory takings claims. Even when owners do win, it is yet more uncommon for courts to award damages, instead allowing the...more

The EPA Reaches Back in Time: Appeals Court Allows Government to Veto 404 Permits Issued Years Earlier

by James Potter | Nexsen Pruet, PLLC on 5/16/2013

Both public and private landowners have to obtain Section 404 discharge permits for the discharge of dredged materials from navigable waters. The Army Corps of Engineers is the permitting authority for the Section 404...more

Court Upholds Zoning Ordinance That Restricts Location Of Medical Marijuana Collectives And Cooperatives

by Jon E. Goetz, Jonathan Hobbs, Jeffrey L. Massey | Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard on 5/15/2013

An owner of a medical marijuana collective challenged a county zoning ordinance that restricts the location of medical marijuana collectives and cooperatives to commercial and manufacturing zones. The court of appeals...more

Appellate Notes: Week of April 18th

by Edward McCreery III | Pullman & Comley, LLC on 5/14/2013

Welcome to our Supreme and Appellate Court summaries webpage. On this page, I provide abbreviated summaries of decisions from the Connecticut appellate courts which highlight important issues and developments in Connecticut...more

Public Agency May Begin Eminent Domain Proceedings Before Completing CEQA Review, But May Not Actually Acquire The Property Until...

by William T. Chisum, Jon E. Goetz, Jeffrey L. Massey, Leslie Z. Walker | Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard on 5/13/2013

A racetrack landowner challenged a regional park district’s plan to condemn part of the property for construction of a bayside trail, asserting that the park district was required under eminent domain law and the California...more

California Supreme Court: Cities Can Ban Facilities That Distribute Medical Marijuana

by Mona G. Ebrahimi, Jonathan Hobbs | Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard on 5/9/2013

The California Supreme Court recently resolved the issue of whether a city could enact zoning ordinances prohibiting and banning medical marijuana dispensaries. The Supreme Court held that state medical marijuana laws do not...more

New York Appellate Court Throws Curveball at Fracking Debate

by Luke Cantrell | Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell &... on 5/9/2013

The Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court, Third Department, unanimously rejected an appeal from Norse Energy Corporation, and affirmed the Town of Dryden’s right to prevent fracking through land use and zoning...more

Federal Court Provides Guidance on Adequacy of Consultation About Environmental Assessments of Major Resource Projects

by Jeremy Barretto, Thoma Gelbman, Suzanne MacMillan | Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on 5/8/2013

On April 23, 2013, the Federal Court of Canada released its decision dismissing an application commenced by the Conseil des Innus de Ekuanitshit (the Applicant) to judicially review the Order in Council (OIC) issued on the...more

New York Court Upholds Local Hydraulic Fracturing and Oil and Gas Development Bans

by Cassie J. Dallas | BakerHostetler on 5/8/2013

Last Friday, a four judge panel of a New York appeals court upheld two local zoning laws that prohibit activities related to oil and gas exploration and development, including hydraulic fracturing. The decisions in Norse...more

Calif. Supreme Court Upholds Medical Marijuana Dispensary Bans

by Josh Crank | Lawyers.com on 5/7/2013

In a unanimous decision, the California Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling allowing cities and counties in the state to pass blanket bans prohibiting medical marijuana dispensaries....more

Court Dismisses Suit For Failure To Strictly Comply With 60-Day Notice Requirement

by David Miller | Nossaman LLP on 5/7/2013

In Klamath Siskyou Wildlands Center v. MacWhorter, 1:12-cv-1900 (pdf), the United States District Court for the District of Oregon granted a motion to dismiss plaintiffs’ suit alleging that the U.S. Forest Service (USFS)...more

Texas Supreme Court Rules in Southern Crushed Concrete that Texas Clean Air Act Preempts City of Houston Land Use Ordinance

by Jacob Arechiga, Steven Dimitt, Michael Knapek, Peter Wahl | Jackson Walker on 5/3/2013

On February 15, 2013, the Texas Supreme Court reversed the rulings of both a trial court and lower appellate court and found in favor of Southern Crushed Concrete in holding that a City of Houston ordinance placing location...more

Appeals Court Upholds Drilling Bans

by Thomas Puchner | Phillips Lytle - Renewable Energy on 5/3/2013

In twin decisions handed down today, the Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Third Department upheld two local zoning laws that prohibit activities related to oil and gas development (commonly referred to as “hydraulic...more

Missing CEQA Statute of Limitations Is Not Excusable Neglect, Third District Holds

by Arthur F. Coon | Miller Starr Regalia on 5/2/2013

In its terse, no-nonsense opinion in Alliance For the Protection of the Auburn Community v. County of Placer, et al. (2013) 215 Cal.App.4th 25, ordered published onApril 2, 2013, the Third District Court of Appeal affirmed a...more

Ninth Circuit Invalidates Consent Decree: Parties Must Go Back To The Drawing Board

by Ben Rubin | Nossaman LLP on 5/2/2013

On April 25, 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit invalidated a consent decree that plaintiffs and three federal agency defendants asserted resolved a dispute spanning more than a decade. See...more

D.C. Appeals Court Says EPA May Revoke Fill Permit After It Has Been Issued

by Marc Bruner, Edgar Washburn | Perkins Coie on 5/1/2013

In addressing an important legal issue of first impression, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s “veto” authority under Section 404(c) of the...more

Update on CEQA Reform: Steinberg’s Quest for the “Elusive Middle Ground”

by Shaye Diveley, Miles H. Imwalle | Morrison & Foerster LLP on 5/1/2013

The last year witnessed what once appeared to be a groundswell of support for the “modernization” of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), loosely meaning easing the burden of the process itself and minimizing...more

Surprise, Surprise, Surprise: An Agency Cannot Revise Regulations In a Consent Decree

by Seth Jaffe | Foley Hoag LLP - Environmental Law on 4/30/2013

In a decision that should not have come as a surprise to anyone, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday, in Conservation Northwest v. Sherman, that the Bureau of Land Management and other agencies implementing the...more

CEQA Reform: The Cure May Be Worse Than The Disease

by Marc Bruner, Julie Jones, Barbara Schussman | Perkins Coie on 4/30/2013

According to the author’s April 23, 2013 press release, the amended version of Senate Bill 731 is a “comprehensive reform” of CEQA, “modernizing the law to aid California’s economic growth.” But a close review shows that the...more

Appeals Court Reinstates EPA “Veto” Over Corps’ Mining-Related Permit - Mingo Logan decision creates uncertainty in Clean Water...

by Denise Pettijohn, Christopher "Kip" B. Power, Robert Stonestreet | Dinsmore & Shohl LLP on 4/29/2013

In a surprising reversal, on April 23, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit overturned a lower court order issued on March 23, 2012, in the case of Mingo Logan Coal Company v. U.S. Envtl. Prot....more

Divided Supreme Court Upholds Chicago Condo Association Ordinance

by Kirk Jenkins | Sedgwick LLP on 4/29/2013

Yesterday, the Illinois Supreme Court filed its long-awaited opinion in Palm v. 2800 Lake Shore Drive Condominium Association. Although on its face, Palm relates only to the enforceability of a Chicago city ordinance on...more

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Zoning, Planning & Land Use › Civil Procedure