The court holds that the federal government's reallocation of a Native American tribe's excess water supply to a second tribe did not constitute a taking of irrigation districts' water rights. After the districts entered into subcontracts with the state and federal government for residual water righ...

A judge dissents from the Ninth Circuit's decision not to rehear a case addressing the Oil Pollution Act's (OPA's) preemptive effect on Washington State's oil spill prevention regulations. The initial Ninth Circuit opinion held that the OPA did not preempt the majority of the state's oil spill regul...

The court holds that a property owner cannot maintain an action for forcible ejectment against a company that was ordered to acquire the property owner's land as part of a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act remedial plan. The company, which obtained all of the land...

The court holds that a state environmental agency did not have a duty to ascertain the accuracy of the location of wetlands on developers' property. The court first holds that the duty to depict accurately the location of wetlands was properly the duty of the developers and their representatives. It...

The court affirms a district court's grant of summary judgment on several state-law tort claims in favor of pesticide companies whose products allegedly caused a newborn's multiple birth defects. The district court granted summary judgment because the evidence showed that the product at issue had no...

The court holds that the passage of the Oil Pollution Act (OPA), which requires single-hulled oil tankers to be retrofitted with double hulls or be phased out of service, did not effect a taking of shipping companies' oil tankers. The court first holds that when the companies built or acquired the v...

The court vacates a district court's dismissal of a community association's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Intermodal Surface Transportation and Efficiency Act (ISTEA) claims against the federal government in connection with a highway project in Tennessee. The court first holds that th...

The court reverses a district court's acquittal of a tow boat company, a company officer, and the boat's captains for violating the Federal Water Pollution Control Act by dumping pollutants into a river without a permit. The district court acquitted the defendants after a jury found them guilty. The...

The court reverses a district court's dismissal of a peat company's Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) §404 and takings claims against the federal government concerning a proposed §404 permit. The court first holds that the district court erred in finding that it did not have subject matt...

The court holds that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) does not preempt a California city's comprehensive municipal environmental response and liability ordinance. An insurer challenged the constitutionality of the ordinance. The court first dismisses...