The Federal Claims Court awarded a Florida developer $4 million after finding that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' denial of the developer's §404 permit request to dredge and fill a five-acre plot of land effected a compensable taking. The Federal Circuit had previously ruled on appeal that the f...

The Supreme Court of South Carolina reinstated an administrative law court (ALC) decision that reversed and denied a state agency's issuance of a permit for a construction and demolition landfill. The ALC denied the permit based on its conclusion that the region already had more landfill capacity th...

The D.C. Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part a lower court decision rejecting an animal rights group's FOIA request for records concerning National Institutes of Health (NIH) investigations of animal abuse at a university research lab. NIH issued "Glomar" responses, meaning that the agency...

The D.C. Circuit held that an EPA employee's lawsuit against the Agency for allegedly retaliating against him in violation of several environmental whistleblowing provisions was untimely. In 2000, the employee was working in EPA's ombudsman office. Following a pattern of controversial behavior at a ...

The Ninth Circuit, in a 170+ page opinion, reversed in part and affirmed in part a lower court decision invalidating the FWS' 2008 biological opinion (BiOp) that concluded that the Central Valley Project (CVP) would jeopardize the continued existence of the delta smelt and its habitat. The project s...

A district court held that an insurance company has a duty to defend a commercial property owner in an underlying action concerning contamination from property it leased to a dry cleaning business. The owner discovered the contamination in 2007. In 2008, it tore down the property. In 2010, the owner...