Your Resource for What's New in CEQA Law and Litigation
In an unpublished opinion, McMillan v. County of Siskiyou (2012) 2012 Cal.App.Unpub. Lexis 3791, the Third District Court of Appeal held a property owner does not have a vested right to mine his property where the previous owner did not assert a vested right to engage in mining activities.
Petitioner acquired property in Siskiyou County…
In Wild Equity Institute v. City and County of San Francisco, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 58620, Plaintiffs, a collection of non-profit conservation groups, sued the City of San Francisco (City) for violation of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), claiming City’s actions as the owner and operator of the Sharp Park Golf Course (SPGC) have…
Preparation of the administrative record for CEQA litigation is governed by Public Resources Code section 21167.6, subdivision (e). In Consolidated Irrigation District v. The Superior Court of Fresno County, (2012) ___ Cal.App.4th_____, the court provided important guidance regarding the proper contents of the record and sets some limitations on an agency’s responsibility to respond…
In Abatti v. Imperial Irrigation District (2012) 2012 Cal.App. LEXIS 496, the court considered whether the substantial evidence, rather than the “fair argument,” test applies to determine whether further environmental review is warranted for a subsequent approval where the agency has initially adopted a negative declaration for the project.
In 2006, the irrigation district adopted…
In Sierra Club v. Napa County Board of Supervisors (2012) 2012 Cal.App. LEXIS 454, the Sierra Club challenged a lot line adjustment ordinance adopted by Napa County, which allowed lot line adjustments under the Subdivision Map Act on parcels that had previously been adjusted, as long as the prior lot line adjustment has been completed…
In City of Malibu v. California Coastal Commission (2012) ___ Cal.App.4th ___, the California Court of Appeal, Second District, considered whether California Public Resources Code section 30515, known as the override provision of the Coastal Act, allows a public works agency to apply to the Coastal Commission to override policies and standards in a locality’s…
In Salmon Protection and Watershed Network v. County of Marin (2102) 2012 Cal.App. LEXIS 458, the court considered whether a public agency and a party disputing the adequacy of an EIR could enter into an agreement to toll the statute of limitations setting the time period for filing a CEQA lawsuit to challenge the EIR.…
In Jamulians Against the Casino v. Iwasaki (2012) ___ Cal.App.4th ___, petitioner alleged that a settlement agreement entered between Jamul Indian Village and Caltrans constituted a discretionary approval of a CEQA project by Caltrans. The settlement agreement at issue disposed of a federal lawsuit between those parties relating to the application of CEQA to the…
On April 23, 2012, the Planning and Conservation League (PCL) filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Assembly Bill No. 900 (2011-2012 Reg. Sess.) (see Conservation League v. State of California, RG12626904 (Alameda Sup. Ct.) available at http://www.cnsenvironmentallaw.com/2012/04/26/Conservation.pdf.) AB 900 requires CEQA litigation challenging eligible projects to skip over the superior court and…
In No Wetlands Landfill Expansion v. County of Marin (2012) 2012 Cal.App.LEXIS 330, the First Appellate District reversed the trial court’s determination that CEQA required the Marin County Board of Supervisors to hear an administrative appeal from the Marin County Environmental Health Services’s (Marin EHS) approval of a solid waste facilities permit for the expansion…
