...the Navajo Nation had its own share of frustrations with the federal response to the incident. According to Nation Attorney General Ethel Branch, “The impact has been devastating to our culture and economy, as well as to the peace of…
All of these cases share a common feature: They arose from unelected bureaucrats making completely selective decisions about how a law should be interpreted and enforced, without the oversight or input of Congress or the public. Rachel Bovard USA Today…
That battle landed in numerous courts in 2015 when the Obama Administration issued a new interpretation of WOTUS. They said the new rule gave EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers “broader authority over the nation’s waterways.” But it wasn’t…
The EPA has defined Curtis’ creek as “navigable waters,” which would put it under federal government control. If the EPA takes control of Curtis’ land, he would be required to obtain government permits before doing anything to his creek—including the…
The Navy veteran argued that he didn’t violate the Clean Water Act because digging the ponds did not discharge any soil to navigable waters, since the trickle in the channel didn’t constitute navigable waters. The largest navigable body of…
"For the first time, we are clearly defining the difference between federally protected waterways and state protected waterways. Our simpler and clearer definition would help landowners understand whether a project on their property will require a federal permit or not,…
Sadly, many political leaders on both sides still think big environmental problems require federal solutions (as opposed to individuals, businesses, or even state and local governments). But this approach proves federal authority doesn’t necessarily require heavy-handed dictates from Washington. Commentary…
Now the 9th Circuit has ordered that Joe Robertson’s pending motion for rehearing should be postponed until the Supreme Court releases its decision in Hughes. (Joe has already served his full prison sentence and is currently back home in Montana where his legal problems…
New information discovered from the legal battle against farmer Robert Brace reveals that his plight has been part of a broader, decades-long crusade led by a select group of environmental officials, with the active support of special-interest activists, to expand…
“An attorney’s zealous advocacy for the protection of a client’s interests is certainly appropriate; however, the legitimate pursuit of justice imposes important obligations on counsel to ensure that the Court is not a mechanism of harassment or unbridled obstruction,” Baxter wrote…