Where interpretative testimony and expert opinion would likely be required to determine the validity of a final rule issued by the Council on Environmental Quality, or CEQ, and the standing and ripeness issues raised by the defendants could require evidence, ...

Tagged with: Administrative Judge James P. Jones U.S. District Court - Western District

A rule promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Services, prohibiting physicians and other providers in Title X programs from referring patients for an abortion and imposing other requirements on entities receiving Title X funds, was enjoined. HHS inadequately ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Administrative Judge Albert Diaz Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III Judge Julius N. Richardson Judge Stephanie Dawn Thacker

It remains uncertain whether the “substantially prevailing standard” to recover attorneys’ fees under the Clean Water Act, or CWA, allows a party to obtain fees if through litigation it obtains some of the relief sought – judicially sanctioned or otherwise. ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Administrative

Where the government removed prior decisions involving corrections to military records from a website, but still made them available upon request, a veterans non-profit organization lacked standing to challenge the removal because it could still fulfill its mission. Furthermore, the ...

Tagged with: Administrative Judge Rossie D. Alston Jr. U.S. District Court - Eastern District

An “artfully pleaded” complaint for damages that asserted only state law claims was nevertheless removable to federal court because it sought to alter the terms of a tariff filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC. That same tariff ...

Tagged with: Administrative Administrative Law Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

The circuit court incorrectly sustained a county planning commission’s demurrer to a limited partnership’s claim that the denial of a permit to mine sand and gravel was “arbitrary and capricious.” The partnership provided unrebutted evidence that the denial was discriminatory, ...

Tagged with: Administrative Supreme Court of Virginia

Where the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, authorized the construction of an interstate natural gas pipeline, Nelson County could not “halt” construction by arguing the project violated local environmental regulations. Instead, the county’s floodplain regulations were preempted because they ...

Tagged with: Administrative Judge Norman K. Moon U.S. District Court - Western District

A party challenging a decision of the Army Corps of Engineers, or USACE, could not rely on evidence that was not in the administrative record. And, because the record showed USACE complied with the requisite guidelines, rules and regulations, its ...

Tagged with: Administrative Judge Henry Coke Morgan Jr. U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A hearing officer’s conclusion that the Loudoun County School Board provided a 9-year-old student with a free appropriate public education, or FAPE, required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA, was not erroneous. Background Plaintiffs Kewin and Elizabeth ...

Tagged with: Administrative Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

The administrative law judge’s conclusion a woman with physical and mental limitations could work as a sales attendant and order clerk was supported by her medical and psychological records. Background In 2013, Margaret Shinaberry applied for social security disability benefits. ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Administrative Judge William B. Traxler Jr.