The Ohio Supreme Court affirmed an appellate court ruling in a lawsuit concerning Volkswagen’s efforts to cheat U.S. diesel emissions tests. Ohio sued the company, arguing its post-sale tampering with emissions control systems violated the state’s Air Pollution Control Act (APCA). The company mo...

A district court granted in part and denied in part environmental groups' motion for summary judgment in a challenge to the Forest Service's and FWS' decisions concerning a revised forest plan for the Flathead National Forest. The groups argued the Services' decisions violated the ESA and NEPA. The ...

A district court granted summary judgment for FWS in a challenge to the adequacy of its recovery plan for the threatened bull trout. Environmental groups argued the plan failed to include objective and measurable criteria as required under §4(f) of the ESA. The court found that the ESA did not impo...

A district court denied FWS' motion to dismiss a challenge to its authorization of 12 leopard import permits from hunts expected to occur in Zimbabwe, Tanzania, and Zambia. Environmental groups argued FWS' authorization violated the ESA by making a non-detriment finding without considering the facto...

The Third Circuit affirmed dismissal of a lawsuit concerning reporting requirements for emissions following fires at a steel facility near Pittsburgh. An environmental group argued the facility operator should have reported the emissions to the federal government pursuant to CERCLA in addition to re...

The Ninth Circuit reversed summary judgment for FWS in a challenge to the Service's 2017 decision reversing its 2011 decision that the Pacific walrus qualified for listing under the ESA. An environmental group had argued the Service violated the APA by failing to sufficiently explain its change in p...

The D.C. Circuit affirmed summary judgment for FWS in a lawsuit concerning its denial of a nonprofit group's permit applications to export four blue iguanas to a Danish zoo and to continue a captive-bred wildlife program at its Arizona facility. A district court saw no problem with FWS' denials and ...

The Eighth Circuit affirmed, 2-1, summary judgment for a mining company in a lawsuit concerning the company's operation of a coal mine in North Dakota. Owners of an adjacent ranch argued the company violated the CAA by failing to obtain the proper construction permit for the mine and failing to impl...

In an unpublished opinion, the D.C. Circuit affirmed dismissal of a challenge to FWS' failure to provide notice and comment on its guidelines for creating species status assessments. An environmental group had argued that FWS violated the ESA by failing to put the guidelines through notice and comme...

The Ninth Circuit reversed summary judgment for FWS in a challenge to the Service's rule requiring that affected states receive a 30-day notice of intent to file a petition to list an endangered species. An environmental group argued that FWS violated the ESA by impermissibly requiring the 30-day no...