Articles

PLF wins venue battle in jaguar case

July 16, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

On Thursday, Judge Kenneth Gonzales of the District of New Mexico ruled in favor of PLF and denied the Center for Biological Diversity and Defender of Wildlife’s motion to transfer venue. I have previously blogged about how Center for Biological Diversity and Defenders of Wildlife, the defendant-intervenors in the case, tried to transfer our ...

Articles

Stopping economic development takings

July 08, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

Many of our readers are aware of the Supreme Court’s decision in Kelo v. City of New London. In that 2005 case, the Court held that a city may take property from homeowners and give it to a large corporation based on the promise that the taking will lead to higher tax revenues. In other words, … ...

Articles

Justice Alito's dissent in Fisher v. University of Texas highlights discrimination against Asian-Americans

June 23, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

Fisher v. University of Texas was a blow to those battling against racial preferences. However, for those looking for any silver lining, Justice Alito’s dissent provides some relief. For the first time in a major affirmative action case, a Supreme Court Justice gave a meaningful discussion about Asian-Americans’ place in the racial pref ...

Articles

Are courts starting to scrutinize administrative decisions?

June 21, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

Today, the Federalist Society Blog shared a post that Larry Salzman and I co-authored regarding how some judges are keeping administrative agencies accountable to average Americans. In the post, we explain that judges are scrutinizing agencies’ decisions more closely, and are requiring them to support their determinations with actual facts an ...

Articles

Opposition to transfer venue filed in jaguar critical habitat case

June 09, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

As our regular readers will know, PLF is representing three New Mexico organizations—New Mexico Farm & Livestock Bureau, New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Association, and New Mexico Federal Lands Council—challenging the illegal critical habitat designation for jaguars in New Mexico. Despite only challenging the designation of land in New M ...

Articles

On Brown v. Board of Education's anniversary, PLF continues to fight for racial equality

May 17, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

Today marks the 62nd anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education. In Brown, the Court unanimously rejected the sordid notion of “separate but equal,” and prohibited the government from treating students differently on the basis of race. … ...

Articles

PLF files brief in Colorado Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights case

May 11, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

The Colorado Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), added to the State constitution by the voters in 1992, requires that voters approve all state and local tax increases. To avoid TABOR’s requirement of voter approval, state and local governments oftentimes characterize a charge as a fee, because TABOR does not require fees to be approved b ...

Articles

Drones and property rights

April 29, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

As recreational drone use expands, hobbyists won’t be the only ones who are flying them. Reports suggest that law enforcement officials are considering adding drones to their tool kit. According to these reports, drones will give law enforcement a bird’s-eye view of major car crashes, active wildfires, and wreckage created by tornadoes ...

Articles

Property is property

April 01, 2016 | By RAYMOND NHAN

The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees that no state shall “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” Reading this clause, one would assume that “property” includes real property (i.e. land), right? Not so fast. Courts nationwide are in disagreement about whether  ...