ELR Citation: ELR 20173
No(s). 51464 (N.D. Cal. Feb 6, 1973)

The court denies the motion of Tulare County to intervene as a party defendant in a suit to restrain a recreational development in the Mineral King area of Sequoia National Park. The court holds that under Fed. R. Civ. P. 24(a)(2) the county asserts no real interest in the case when it seeks to improve the tax base or to foster responsible land use within its boundaries. The issue in the case is not whether the area should be developed but whether federal officials have abused their discretion or have failed to comply with applicable statutes. The court also holds that the county's interests will be adequately represented by the defendants and that county should not be allowed permissive intervention under Fed. R. Civ. P. 24(b)(2), because county's interests do not involve directly the factual and legal issues of the case and would only add to the delays in the litigation. See previous decisions in this litigation at 1 ELR 20010, 1 ELR 20015, 2 ELR 20192, 2 ELR 20469, 2 ELR 20576.

Counsel for Plaintiff
James Moorman
Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, Inc.
311 California Street, Suite 311
San Francisco, CA 94104

Counsel for Applicant, County of Tulare
E. Lewis Reid
Steinhart, Goldberg, Feigenbaum & Ladar
1 Post Street
San Francisco, CA 94104