ELR Citation: ELR 20785
No(s). 1182-73 (D.D.C. Aug 24, 1973)

The court denies defendants' motion to transfer to Montana an action seeking an injunction against the planned development of coal mining in parts of the Northern Great Plains until a comprehensive environmental impact statement is filed. The issues central to the case are not such that they require adjudication by a Montana court, nor do the convenience of parties and witnesses and the interest of justice demand transfer. The case deals primarily with NEPA, a statute with which this court has long experience, and most witnesses and recipients of interrogatories will be federal officials in Washington. The laws regarding venue were primarily intended to make the federal judicial process available to private plaintiffs on a more convenient and less costly basis, and not to allow defendants to overrule plaintiffs' choice of forum.

Counsel for Plaintiffs
Bruce J. Terris
1908 Sunderland Place, NW
Washington, DC 20036

Counsel for Defendants
Herbert Pittle
Department of Justice
Washington, DC 20530