This week, the Ninth Circuit addresses whether the principles of Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994) apply to the accrual of federal civil rights claims against a university and considers the Department of Interior’s...more
The Supreme Court determined in Sturgeon v. Frost that the Nation River, located near Alaska’s eastern border, is not public land for purposes of regulation by the National Park Service (NPS). This case arose due to a...more
Alaska is different—it has moose hunters on hovercrafts, many large national parks, and certain unique federal laws. Last week the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that National Park Service laws and regulations of general...more
On March 29, the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska issued two separate rulings that reversed and set aside energy and environmental decisions made by the current administration, which had revoked decisions made...more
On March 26, 2019, the Supreme Court decided Sturgeon v. Frost, No. 17-949, holding that the federal government does not own a navigable water that traverses a national park in Alaska, so the water is not “public land” under...more
Sturgeon v. Frost, et al., 872 F.3d 927 (9th Cir. 2017). In September 2011, moose hunter John Sturgeon brought an action against the National Park Service (“Park Service”), alleging it inappropriately banned him from using...more
On March 22, during the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 Term, the Court issued a unanimous ruling that the Ninth Circuit’s interpretation of the scope of the National Park Service’s authority to ban the use of a hovercraft on...more
In 2007, National Park Service rangers stopped John Sturgeon from travelling by hovercraft on the Nation River within the boundaries of Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve. Park Service regulations ban the use of...more
A case originating in Alaska may have answered the question for those wondering how the United States Supreme Court will approach weighty questions of law and policy with a vacancy on the Court; it probably won’t....more
The Supreme Court of the United States issued decisions in four cases on March 22, 2016: Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo, No. 14-1146: Respondents, employees at a pork processing plant of petitioner Tyson Foods, filed a...more
On March 22, 2016, the Supreme Court of the United States decided Sturgeon v. Frost, No. 14-1209, vacating a decision of the Ninth Circuit and leaving open the possibility that Section 103(c) of the Alaska National Interest...more