The court holds that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS') decision not to designate critical habitat for the stickleback is not arbitrary and capricious, and that the FWS is not required to ensure compliance with federal and state laws before issuing an incidental take statement to a company ...

The court rejects landowners' request for a declaratory judgment challenging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS') determination that their land could not legally be used for goose hunting. FWS regulations prohibit the taking of migratory birds by the aid of baiting or on or over any baited ar...

The court holds that the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) and its implementing regulations do not preempt Arkansas regulations governing captive-reared mallard ducks. Captive-bred ducks do not fall within the MBTA's scope of federal permitting requirements, and nothing in the MBTA prohibits a state ...

The court affirmed a lower court decision denying a motion for preliminary injunction that would require the protection of mute swans under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The Act, which implements the migratory bird conventions, makes it unlawful to hunt or kill migratory birds native to the United ...

A district court held that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) arbitrarily and capriciously denied petitions to list certain genetically engineered varieties of grasses as noxious weeds under the Plant Protection Act. APHIS' insistence that international obligations require that p...

The court held that a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) incidental take statement authorizing the taking of all northern spotted owls associated with certain proposed timber harvests in the Pacific Northwest is invalid. As a result of a prior court opinion, the FWS voluntarily reinitiated consult...

The Ninth Circuit held that yellowfin tuna caught by encircling dolphins with purse-seine nets may not be labeled "dolphin-safe." Environmental groups challenged the Secretary of Commerce's finding that tuna caught with purse-seine nets does not have an adverse impact on dolphin populations. But the...

The Ninth Circuit vacated a lower court decision granting in part and denying in part cross-motions for summary judgment in a case concerning the validity of the federal government's policy for listing killer whales under the Endangered Species Act. Since the lower court issued its decision, the Nat...

A district court held that National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-Fisheries (NOAA-Fisheries) did not violate the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) when it chose not to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) or environmental assessment for its Hatchery Listing Policy (HLP) fo...

The court grants summary judgment to the U.S. Department of the Interior in a citizen suit action brought against it under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Administrative Procedure Act challenging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS') approval of a habitat conservation plan (HCP) and a...