Great Lakes Law

Supreme Court rejects state’s claim of ownership of groundwater, extends equitable apportionment doctrine to disputed Memphis aquifer

In an unanimous opinion by Chief Justice Roberts, the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected Mississippi’s claims of state ownership of groundwater within its territorial boundaries. The Court instead, as a matter of first impression, extended the equitable apportionment doctrine for flowing waters and resources to the disputed Memphis aquifer. Over two decades of litigation in federal courts, Mississippi has pressed its claim of sovereign ownership of groundwater in the aquifer within its state boundaries. Based... Read more →

Voters Approve Lake Erie Bill of Rights, Polluters Challenge it in Court

On February 26, 2019, voters in Toledo, Ohio overwhelmingly passed the Lake Erie Bill of Rights, fully stated- ESTABLISHING A BILL OF RIGHTS FOR LAKE ERIE, WHICH PROHIBITS ACTIVITIES AND PROJECTS THAT WOULD VIOLATE THE BILL OF RIGHTS We the people of the City of Toledo declare that Lake Erie and the Lake Erie watershed comprise an ecosystem upon which millions of people and countless species depend for health, drinking water and survival. We further... Read more →

Indiana Supreme Court protects the public trust in Great Lakes shorelines – property owners petition U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari

The following guest post is by Jeffrey B. Hyman, Senior Staff Attorney with the Conservation Law Center in Bloomington, Indiana. Jeff is counsel for respondent/intervenors Alliance for the Great Lakes and Save the Dunes in the Gunderson v. State of Indiana litigation. Early this year the Indiana Supreme Court delivered a landmark public trust and equal footing decision in Gunderson v. State of Indiana. The Indiana Supreme Court ruled that at statehood, under these doctrines,... Read more →

Supreme Court considers federal interests and powers in interstate water cases

The US Supreme Court issued a pair of opinions this term dealing with the role of the federal government in ongoing interstate water disputes: (1) Texas v. New Mexico and Colorado; and (2) Florida v. Georgia. The cases are before the Court under “original jurisdiction” - they are being heard on first impression rather than on appeal (although they have been reviewed and reported on by appointed Special Masters). Substantively, both cases involve disputes between... Read more →

New Second Edition of Modern Water Law – comprehensive text now includes human right to water

Our new Second Edition of Modern Water Law: Private Property, Public Rights, and Environmental Protections has been published by Foundation Press and is available on Amazon. Co-authored again with Robert Adler, the Jefferson B. and Rita E. Fordham Presidential Dean, and Robin Kundis Craig, the James I. Farr Presidential Endowed Chair of Law, both at the University of Utah College of Law. Modern Water Law provides a comprehensive text to study the range of legal... Read more →

"Water Law" - new book explores private rights and public interests in freshwater

I have a new book out this year – it’s about water law and aptly named “Water Law.” Water Law: Concepts and Insights (full title) is another collaboration with Robin Kundis Craig, the James I. Farr Presidential Endowed Chair of Law, and Robert Adler, the Jefferson B. and Rita E. Fordham Presidential Dean, both at the University of Utah College of Law. (The cover photo of the Detroit River was taken from Belle Isle State... Read more →

Michigan court allows claims against the state for violating Constitutional rights to bodily injury from the Flint water crisis to go forward

In one of the first court decisions on the Flint water crisis, Mays v. Snyder, the Michigan Court of Claims has ruled that a major class action based on the state’s alleged violation of individual rights to bodily integrity under substantive due process can proceed. The court’s opinion begins with a detailed factual background based on allegations which would give rise to valid claims against the state for causing the Flint water crisis and state... Read more →

Standing on the public trust doctrine

The standing doctrine is one of Justice Scalia’s legacies and has become a powerful tool for keeping environmental citizen suits out of court. A recent federal district court decision in Chicago recognizes the public trust doctrine as a basis for granting citizens standing to sue to protect certain natural resources. The following guest post by Austin Probst gives a brief update on this decision. Austin is a Wayne Law student (JD expected ‘17), member of... Read more →

On the Supreme Court’s docket – Mississippi v. Tennessee, the first interstate groundwater case

What’s the biggest news story about the Supreme Court and environmental law? Justice Scalia’s passing and the hot list of potential replacements? The Court’s unprecedented stay of President Obama’s Clean Power Plan? Or the grant of leave to hear Mississippi v. Tennessee, the first ever interstate groundwater case? If you picked the last one, you’re reading the right blog post. Admittedly it’s not the hot news item for environmental lawyers and Supreme Court spectators. But... Read more →

Indiana court recognizes public right to walk and sunbathe on Lake Michigan shore – guest post by Alexis Andiman

The following guest post on the public trust doctrine in Indiana is by Alexis Andiman, Graduate Fellow Attorney with the Conservation Law Center in Bloomington, Indiana. Before joining the Conservation Law Center, Alexis was a fellow with the Center for Biological Diversity in San Francisco, California. She received her J.D. with honors and a Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law from Lewis & Clark Law School in 2013. Alexis can be contacted at aandiman@indiana.edu.... Read more →

Law and Governance of the Great Lakes

Along with my friend and colleague Ben Houston, I’ve published a new article entitled simply “Law and Governance of the Great Lakes.” The article appears in the DePaul Law Review’s special symposium issue on the Great Lakes, 63 DePaul Law Review 723 (2014). It aims to explain the law and governance of the Great Lakes within the United States (apologies to Canada, that’s a subject for another time). While discussing the key laws and policies,... Read more →

A critical look at Michigan’s coastal sand dune law

Coastal sand dunes are one of Michigan’s most treasured resources. In 1994, the state enacted legislation regulating land use on sand dunes. The legislature intended to balance competing public and private interests over the resource. The Sand Dune Protection and Management Act (SDPMA) was extensively amended in August 2012. As amended, local governments have a significantly diminished role in determining land use on sand dunes within their borders. Suzanne Sutherland is an attorney with Hilger... Read more →

Transnational Environmental Law Clinic Comments on Proposed Wastewater Treatment Plant

The following student post is by David Furman (B.S. Accounting, Oakland University, J.D., Wayne State University Law School, expected 2015). While in law school, David has clerked at a mid-sized law firm and is currently employed in the regulatory department of an international electrical transmission corporation. David is working as a student attorney this semester in the Transnational Environmental Law Cling. Also, special thanks to former Clinic student Andew Gonyea who worked on this project... Read more →