4th Circuit sides with pipeline in eminent domain case

RICHMOND (AP) A federal appeals court has sided with the Mountain Valley Pipeline in an eminent domain lawsuit brought by landowners in the project’s path.

A panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on July 25 affirmed the ruling of a lower-court judge who didn’t rule on the case’s constitutional issues but dismissed them, saying she lacked subject matter jurisdiction.

Justin Lugar, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said his clients are evaluating the opinion and possible next steps.

A pipeline spokeswoman declined comment.

Work on the natural gas pipeline is under way in West Virginia and Virginia. An executive with pipeline partner NextEra Energy said in an earnings call July 25 that construction delays mean the project won’t be in service until the first quarter of 2019 at the earliest.