A district court denied summary judgment for environmental groups in a challenge to FWS' 2015 rule that classified any reestablished black-footed ferret population in Wyoming as a nonessential experimental population. The groups argued FWS' designation of reintroduced ferrets as "nonessential" viola...

A district court affirmed BLM's resource management plan (RMP) amendment and record of decision (ROD) concerning wild horse management in southern Wyoming. Conservation and wild horse advocate groups argued BLM's decision to revert two herd management areas to "herd area" status, of which the approp...

A district court granted summary judgment for environmental groups in a challenge to NMFS' biological opinion (BiOp) on the impact of oil and gas extraction in the Gulf of Mexico on protected marine life. The groups argued NMFS violated the APA and the ESA by issuing a flawed BiOp that underestimate...

In an unpublished opinion, the Ninth Circuit reversed a lower court's vacatur of an incidental take statement (ITS) issued by NMFS authorizing a troll fishery in Alaska to harvest Chinook salmon despite potential reduction in prey for the endangered southern resident killer whale, and affirmed its d...

A district court granted in part and denied in part summary judgment for environmental groups in a challenge to FWS' 2020 revised 12-month finding on a petition to list the Upper Missouri River distinct population segment of arctic grayling. The groups argued FWS failed to analyze the adequacy of ex...

A district court adopted in part, modified in part, and rejected in part a magistrate judge's findings and recommendations in a challenge to FWS' biological opinion (BiOp) for Flathead National Forest's 2018 revised land management plan. Environmental groups argued FWS and the Forest Service violate...

The Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court's permanent injunction in an ESA citizen suit concerning a proposed timber harvesting project on private property in Oregon. Environmental groups argued the project would cause a "take" of marbled murrelets in violation of the ESA by clearing acres of tree...

In an unpublished per curiam judgment, the D.C. Circuit affirmed summary judgment for NMFS in a challenge to the Service's 2019 rule regarding turtle excluder devices. Environmental groups argued the final rule was not adequately explained, that it was not a logical outgrowth of the proposed rule th...

The Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling in favor of the Bureau of Reclamation and FWS in a challenge to the agencies' renewal of water supply contracts in California. Environmental groups argued that FWS conducted an inadequate consultation on the effects of the renewals on delta smelt an...

A district court granted summary judgment for a fisheries biologist in a challenge to the Army Corps of Engineers' flood control operations at a California dam. The biologist argued the operations, which released water from the dam into the Russian River, violated §9 of the ESA by unlawfully "takin...