A district court granted in part and denied in part a tribe's motion for partial summary judgment in a lawsuit concerning a hydroelectric dam on the Puyallup River in Washington. The tribe argued the dam operator's installation of a temporary rock dam/spillway unlawfully harmed and harassed Chinook ...

A district court granted in part environmental groups' motion for summary judgment in a challenge to various agency actions relating to EPA's approval of the state of Florida's application to assume permitting authority under §404 of the CWA. The groups argued EPA and FWS violated the ESA because n...

The Tenth Circuit, 2-1, affirmed in part and reversed in part summary judgment for an oil and gas company in a lawsuit brought by a cattle ranch in Oklahoma. The ranch brought several tort claims, arguing the company's pipeline leaked and contaminated its property. A district court concluded the con...

A district court denied nonprofit groups' motion for summary judgment in a challenge to FWS' 2016 decision to delist the Louisiana black bear after determining its population had recovered and was no longer threatened. The groups argued FWS should not have included the Upper Atchafalaya River Basin ...

A district court granted NMFS' motion to dismiss a challenge to its lobster fishing gear regulations. Environmental groups argued the regulations did not adequately protect the endangered North American right whale, in violation of the ESA and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. NMFS moved to dismiss ...

The Fourth Circuit reversed a district court order abstaining from ruling on constitutional claims brought by mineral interest owners challenging amendments to West Virginia's oil and gas conservation law. Plaintiffs argued the amendments, which for the first time authorized "unitization of interest...

A district court granted the state of Louisiana's request to block EPA and DOJ from imposing disparate impact mandates under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. The state argued the agencies were attempting to create disparate impact mandates under Title VI by regulation without having authority to do...

A district court granted environmental groups' motion to lift a stay of a suit challenging NMFS' biological opinion (BiOp) concerning oil and gas activity in the Gulf of Mexico. The groups initially argued NMFS issued a flawed BiOp that underestimated the risks of harm to protected species and took ...

The Eighth Circuit reversed a district court ruling in a challenge to Iowa's "ag gag" law that criminalizes undercover investigations at agricultural production facilities. Initially, the law prohibited the facilities from being accessed under false pretenses as well as prohibited false statements o...

The Tenth Circuit reversed a district court finding of a CWA violation in a citizen suit brought against the operator of a gold mine in Colorado. Plaintiffs argued the operator violated the CWA because seepage from the mine's settling ponds flowed into the groundwater and then migrated to the Middle...