The Online Journal was started by the 2010-2011 Editorial Board. It is free to the public and features a variety of material including staff written summaries of significant public lands, natural resources and federal Indian law court decisions and article summaries and presentations from current and past authors and conference participants.
Online Journal Volume II – Issue 2
By Heather Baltes - Vandevere v. Lloyd, 644 F.3d 957 (9th Cir. 2011).
In Vandevere v. Lloyd, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the plaintiffs’ claims that state regulation limiting commercial fishing constituted an unconstitutional taking of property. The court found that entry permits and shore fishery leases to commercially harvest salmon are licenses, and state regulation did not create or convey a constitutionally protected property interest. Further, the court determined that by signing the leases, the plaintiffs waived their right to challenge state regulation of shore fishery leases and that the state did not violate plaintiffs’ substantive due process rights.
Read the full summary here.
By Talasi Brooks- Alliance for the Wild Rockies v. Salazar, 2011 WL 3330821 (D. Mont. Aug. 3, 2011).
In Alliance for the Wild Rockies v. Salazar, the United States District Court for the District of Montana upheld the constitutionality of a congressional rider that removed Endangered Species Act protection for gray wolves. In an order granting the defendants’ motion for summary judgment, the United States District Court for the District of Montana found the congressional delisting of gray wolves was constitutional because, according to Ninth Circuit precedent, the language “without regard to any other provision of statute or regulation” included in the rider removed any Separation of Powers concerns.
Read the full summary here.
By Matt Jennings - Cedar Farm, Harrison County, Inc., v. Louisville Gas and Electric Co., 658 F.3d 807 (7th Cir. 2011).
In Cedar Farm, Harrison County, Inc., v. Louisville Gas and Electric Company, the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that a drilling lease between an oil and gas company and a landowner could not be terminated because of environmental damage to the property if the lease only provided monetary damages when the property was harmed. The court determined that once oil and gas production began, the oil and gas company acquired an interest in the land, and a lease could only be terminated if money was an insufficient remedy.
Read the full summary here.
By Brad Jones - Minard Run Oil Company v. United States Forest Service, 2011 WL 4389220 (3d Cir. Sept. 20, 2011).
In response to oil and gas development on the Allegheny National Forest, the U.S. Forest Service issued a statement suspending administrative consideration of new permits to drill into privately held mineral rights on the national forest. Owners of mineral rights sued the Forest Service, petitioning for a preliminary injunction against the policy on the basis that they had been denied access to their holdings. The U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Forest Service policy had the effect of causing severe economic hardship to the plaintiffs and, therefore, upheld a lower court’s grant of the injunction.
Read the full summary here.
By Dustin Leftridge - United States v. King, ___ F.3d ___, 2011 WL 4537801 (9th Cir. Oct. 3, 2011).
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit determined that the government’s broad regulatory scope under the Safe Drinking Water Act did not exceed Congress’ authority under the U.S. Constitution’s Commerce Clause. An Idaho farmer discharged wastewater into a well and was found guilty on criminal charges under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The Ninth Circuit held that in order to bring criminal charges under the Act, the government has the burden to show that a defendant willfully injected a fluid into the ground without a permit, not that the injection actually damaged a source of groundwater.
Read the full summary here.
By Alexa Sample - Miami Tribe of Oklahoma v. United States, 656 F.3d 1129 (10th Cir. 2011).
The BIA appealed the district court’s affirmation of its final decision on the application of a holder of a fractional interest in allotted land to transfer part of his interest to the Miami Tribe. Despite substantially prevailing in the final order, the BIA declared its discretion was constrained by the district court’s earlier remand order. The Tenth Circuit held that the BIA’s appeal met the jurisdictional requirements of Article III and vacated the earlier remand order of the district court on the grounds that the BIA had not abused its discretion in denying the land transfer application.
Read the full summary here.
By Ben Sudduth - City of Hugo v. Nichols, 656 F.3d 1251 (10th Cir. 2011).
The City of Hugo, Oklahoma, entered into a contract with the City of Irving, Texas, for the sale of water. The Oklahoma Water Resources Board denied Hugo’s permit application to allocate water to Irving, basing its decision on Oklahoma law. Hugo sued the Board arguing that the dormant Commerce Clause trumped the Oklahoma law under the Supremacy Clause. The Tenth Circuit determined the dormant Commerce Clause did not convey a specific right to Hugo; therefore, Hugo lacked standing, as well as jurisdiction, to bring the claim in federal court.
Read the full summary here.
Online Journal Volume II
Online Journal Volume I
New case summaries will be posted on the main page as they arrive from our staff members.
