The Federal Circuit upheld a lower court decision dismissing on jurisdictional grounds a landowner's Fifth Amendment takings claim against the government in connection with a CWA permit denial. The lower court held that the complaint was barred by 28 U.S.C. §1500, which prohibits the U.S. Court of ...
The Fifth Circuit held that parties to the class action settlement agreement concerning economic and property damages stemming from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill may seek appellate review of district court decisions on individual claims. The district court had approved final rules governing discre...
The Ninth Circuit denied community groups' petition for review challenging EPA's approval of revisions to California's SIP concerning air emissions from pesticides, known as the "pesticide element." The revisions related to the reduction of volatile organic compounds in the San Joaquin and Ventura a...
A district court held that trade associations and nonprofit corporations representing members of the timber industry lack standing to challenge the Forest Service's 2012 planning rule governing development of individual land and resource management plans for the 155 national forests and 20 national ...
The D.C. Circuit reversed and vacated a portion of a January 2013 rule in which EPA revised the NESHAPs and new source performance standards for backup generators. Specifically, the court held that EPA acted arbitrarily and capriciously when it modified the NESHAPs and NSPS to allow backup generator...
The D.C. Circuit dismissed petitions challenging EPA's and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA's) coordinated rules governing the greenhouse gas emissions and fuel economy of cars and trucks. One group of petitioners—businesses, associations, and individuals located in Cali...
The D.C. Circuit, in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Utility Air Regulatory Group v. EPA, No. 12-1146, 44 ELR 20132 (2014), amended a prior decision in which it upheld four EPA rulemakings governing greenhouse gases (GHGs). The four rules are: (1) EPA's endangerment finding, in which i...