Articles

Seattle asks the Washington Supreme Court to rewrite the law to allow a tax on success

August 02, 2018 | By BRIAN HODGES

Washington State boasts one of the most protective constitutions in the nation. Among its unique provisions, the Uniformity Clause protects individuals from discriminatory taxation by requiring that any taxes be imposed in a uniform manner. In addition to that, the state legislature, long ago, passed a law forbidding cities and counties from taxing ...

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A ‘Steppe’ in the Right Direction : BLM’s Proposed Amendments to the Sage-Grouse Rules

August 03, 2018 | By KAYCEE ROYER

???Yesterday,? PLF filed comments on Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) proposed amendments to the Greater Sage-Grouse Resource Management Plans in Colorado, ?Idaho, Oregon, Nevada and Northeastern Californian, Utah, and ?Wyoming. The Greater Sage-Grouse is a large ground-dwelling bird. Its habitat is spread across eleven western states where ...

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Weekly litigation update — August 4, 2018

August 04, 2018 | By JAMES BURLING

Seattle asks courts to clear the way for unlawful taxes Late last year, a King County, Washington, trial court ruled in Kunath v. City of Seattle (formerly Shock v. City of Seattle), that Seattle’s attempt to levy an income tax on so called “high-earners” was plainly unlawful. In what the local press has called a … ...

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PLF files brief in Florida takings case at Supreme Court

August 06, 2018 | By MARK MILLER

This week, Pacific Legal Foundation filed its Reply Brief in support of its Petition for Writ of Certiorari in the Pacetta v. Town of Ponce Inlet case. Pacetta, a case trapped in the court system for years, is an important case for all land owners who find themselves at the mercy of a local government … ...

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Opening brief filed in gray wolf listing challenge

August 06, 2018 | By DAMIEN SCHIFF

Today we filed our opening brief in our challenge, on behalf of the California Cattlemen’s Association and the California Farm Bureau Federation, to the listing of the gray wolf under the California Endangered Species Act. We make three basic arguments. First, the listing violates the Act’s limitation to native flora and fauna, because ...

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What’s the beef? Missouri’s attempt to silence speech about veggie burgers

August 06, 2018 | By JONATHAN WOOD

Originally published by The Hill, August 6, 2018. On long summer days, Americans flock to poolside barbeques. We gather friends and families around the grill for the most American of food: the burger. Even vegetarians such as the authors  are accommodated with black bean or quinoa burgers. Long staples for vegetarians, beef substitutes are attract ...

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This monkey got his day in court. Property owners still can’t.

August 07, 2018 | By BRIAN HODGES

Why should a monkey receive more protection from the federal courts than a property owner? Robert Thomas of inversecondemnation.com asks that question in a poignant and humorous friend of the court brief filed with the Supreme Court of the United States in support of PLF client, Rose Mary Knick. A bit of background is necessary. … ...

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Uber/Lyft drivers taken for a ride at the 9th Circuit

August 09, 2018 | By TIMOTHY SNOWBALL

Back in November, PLF filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit regarding Clark v. Seattle, a case concerning a 2015 enactment by the Seattle City Council (at the behest of the Teamsters) of a first-in-the-nation Ordinance allowing unions to insert themselves as exclusive representatives to collectively negotiate cont ...

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Weekly litigation report — August 10, 2018

August 11, 2018 | By JAMES BURLING

Reply brief filed with Supreme Court in long-running property rights case out of Florida Earlier this week we filed our Reply Brief in support of our request that the U.S. Supreme Court accept for review the takings case of Pacetta v. Town of Ponce Inlet. This case had its genesis 14 years ago, when Simone … ...