United States v. Tate Pulliam
Outdoorsman’s fishing trip exposes how park officials make up criminal law
Man fights criminal charges from Yellowstone trip, arguing park officials have no constitutional power to make criminal law.
United States v. Sunseri
One man’s record-setting run sparked a constitutional battle over the separation of powers
Only Congress can decide what behavior is and isn’t criminally prohibited, and it cannot delegate that authority away. If Congress wants to define behavior as criminal, it must do so itself, or at the very least, set clear limits that dictate how and why officials can do so.
Russo v. Raimondo
Florida fishermen challenge constitutionality of fishery management councils
When a new regulation makes life worse for commercial fishermen, those fishermen have little recourse—because fishing regulations come from a confusing, multi-layered combination of federal and state bureaucrats with little accountability to either voters or the president. That system is unconstitutional, and two Florida fishermen are challenging it in court.
NOAA Speed Limit Cases
Putting the brakes on federal agency’s unlawful ocean speed limit rules
Joseph Urbinati, William Gacioch, and Gerald Eubanks are fighting back against NOAA’s unchecked power grab to vindicate their rights, hold a powerful federal agency accountable to the rule of law, and restore the proper limits of NOAA authority as established by Congress.
Bell v. Raimondo
Illegally formed federal agency threatens livelihoods of Gulf Coast fishermen
Karen Bell and William Copeland both have deep ties to the fishing industry in the Gulf of Mexico. Karen was born into a multi-generation fishing family and after graduating college in 1986, she joined A P Bell Fish Company, a Cortez, Florida, commercial fishing, processing, and distribution company started by her grandfather in 1940. Some 80 miles up Florida’s Gulf Coast in the city of Port Richey, William lives and works as a commercial fisherman.
Thomas Villegas, et al. v. Michael S. Regan, et al.
Landowners fight in-house agency prosecution to restore fairness and political accountability
Thomas and Amy Villegas bought a patch of undeveloped property in Nebraska, intending to use the land’s robust mix of meadows, woods, and streams for hunting and other recreational activities. Now they are being pursued by a federal agency, not in a court of law, but within its own walls, under its own rules, and before its own employees acting as judges.
Raymond Lofstad and Gus Lovgren v. Raimondo
Third Circuit finds fishery management council structure unconstitutional
Raymond Lofstad and Gus Lovgren are both fourth-generation commercial fishermen running small-scale operations in the Mid-Atlantic. They’re asking a federal court to restore their right to earn an honest living without interference by an illegally formed agency and its equally unlawful regulation.
Garrison v. U.S. Department of Education
Fighting lawless student loan cancellations to restore separation of powers
Pacific Legal Foundation filed the nation’s first lawsuit challenging the Education Department’s unacceptable abuse of executive authority to restore the rule of law and to enforce the Constitution’s separation of powers.
Maureen Murphy et al. v. Gina Raimondo et al.
Census Bureau’s unlawful power grab tramples privacy rights and separation of powers
Maureen and John are challenging the Census Bureau’s overreach, so no Americans are ever again forced to choose between huge fines and their right to keep their personal information private.