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News Articles

California’s Newhall Ranch Project Announces It Will Be A ‘Net Zero’ Community

Late last year, the California Supreme Court issued a broad-reaching defeat to Newhall Ranch, a proposed master-planned community in northern Los Angeles County that was…

Read More 2016-11-29

California Court of Appeal Approves Use of Community Facilities Districts to Achieve Fiscal Neutrality in New Developments

In the post-Great Recession era, cities and counties are highly aware of the potential fiscal impacts of new development in their jurisdictions. “Fiscal neutrality” is…

Read More 2016-11-29

California Court of Appeal Finds the Density Bonus Act and Mello Act Are Both Subordinate to the California Coastal Act

The Second District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court’s denial of a writ of mandate seeking to overturn the City of Los Angeles’s decision…

Read More 2016-11-29

Utah Supreme Court Addresses the Limitations of Judicial Continuing Jurisdiction In Water Decrees

In this case the Utah Supreme Court was asked to determine the narrow issue of whether the Little Cottonwood Tanner Ditch Company, Richards Ditch Company…

Read More 2016-11-29

California Releases Action Plan with a Goal of 1.5 Million Zero-Emission Vehicles

On October 12, 2016, California Governor Jerry Brown’s Interagency Working Group on Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEV) released the 2016 ZEV Action Plan (Action Plan). The Action…

Read More 2016-11-26

Ninth Circuit Upholds Use of Climate Change Predictive Models as Basis for Listing Species for Protection Under the Federal Endangered Species Act

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a listing determination under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) based on both near-and long-term climate change…

Read More 2016-11-18

New Mexico Supreme Court Rules that Water Diverted in Colorado But Put to Beneficial Use Within New Mexico is Subject to New Mexico State Engineer’s Jurisdiction

New Mexico has confronted numerous interstate water issues. In virtually all of the cases, New Mexico was the upstream state. On the Pecos River, New…

Read More 2016-11-12

The Endangered Species Act Protects Listed Plants Differently than Listed Animals, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Confirms

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has confirmed that the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) prohibits the unpermitted “taking” of listed fish and wildlife species,…

Read More 2016-11-12

California First District Court of Appeal Finds San Francisco Ordinance Restricting Landlord’s Exit from Rental Market Preempted by State Law

The Court of Appeal for the First District held that a state law known as the Ellis Act of 1985 preempts an ordinance adopted by…

Read More 2016-11-12

U.S. District Court Upholds Nestlé Waters’ Right to Continue Water Diversions on U.S. Forest Service Land

Judge Jesus G. Bernal of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California rejected allegations that the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and other…

Read More 2016-11-12