Articles

Why buy the land when you can get it for free?

April 22, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

Why local governments fail to understand the Fifth Amendment takings clause, I will never know. It’s only been the law for 220 years or so, after all. It is rare that I can open the paper – or read a news site – and not discover a new example of an old problem: the government … ...

Articles

One Fish, Two Fish, Abuse of Power Fish?

May 15, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

William Kent Suter, Former Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States, recently observed that the federal government had “lost four cases dealing with fundamental rights in unanimous decisions,” and that “the positions taken by the government suggested bullying and strong-arm tactics.”  Not surprisingly, the Court re ...

Articles

Will the Florida Supreme Court rewrite the law, or leave that job to the legislature?

May 30, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

An Automatic External Defribrillator (AED) is a portable device that checks the heart rhythm. If needed, it can send an electric shock to the heart to try to restore a normal rhythm. AEDs are used to treat sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and Florida law, like many states, mandates that public schools have them on site to treat individuals suffering ...

Articles

PLF opposes fishy federal prosecution

July 11, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

This week, Pacific Legal Foundation filed a friend of the court brief at the Supreme Court of the United States on behalf of a Florida fisherman named John Yates.  Mr. Yates, a grandfather and commercial fishing boat captain for hire, found himself reeled in by a federal government in an overzealous prosecution.  The government took … ...

Articles

South Florida Sun-Sentinel focuses on PLF

July 15, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

As you know, Pacific Legal Foundation has scored two recent victories in the battle to keep the federal government honest.  Christina Martin wrote about the Fish & Wildlife Service’s decision to downlist the wood stork here, and she wrote about Fish & Wildlife Service’s decision to review the status of the manatee here. The g ...

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PLF sees common sense in manatee lawsuit

August 04, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

The Palm Beach Post published a PLF Atlantic Center op-ed today regarding our most recent win in the federal courts of Florida earlier this summer.  In that suit, we represented Save Crystal River, Inc., in its effort to require the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to abide by the Endangered Species Act.  The op-ed begins: A … ...

Articles

PLF files lawsuit on behalf of Flash Beach Grille

September 04, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

Last week, my Pacific Legal Foundation colleague, Christina Martin, blogged about the PLF’s new lawsuit against Martin County, Florida.  Pacific Legal has asked the state circuit court to declare that Martin County’s government is illegally prohibiting its clients, Robert and Anita Breinig, from using their private property to expand ...

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Pacific Legal Foundation in the news in Florida defending property rights

September 18, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

Earlier this week, the Stuart News published Pacific Legal Foundation‘s op-ed explaining why our clients Bob and Anita Breinig had no choice but to sue Martin County, Florida for ignoring state law and violating the Breinigs’ property rights.  We described why we are representing the Breinigs and their Flash Beach Grille, and in doin ...

Articles

Defending property owners along the Great Lakes

September 25, 2014 | By MARK MILLER

Longtime readers know that Pacific Legal Foundation has defended property owners along the Great Lakes for many years.  These states have a history of trying to grab land for free from private property owners (see here for an example in Michigan, and here for an example in Ohio), using an ersatz version of the centuries-old public trust doc ...