Articles

On the way to work this morning-after-election day, I heard a great deal of talk on the radio about “mandates.” Pacific Legal Foundation has a mandate to serve the interest of liberty from coast to coast, and the PLF Atlantic Center office follows-through on the mandate by representing clients in disputes with the government all … ...

Earlier today, Pacific Legal Foundation noted that the Supreme Court was scheduled to hear arguments this morning in the case that has become known as “the fishy federal prosecution” of John Yates.  Having now had the opportunity to review the transcript of the OA, it is clear that the justices did not take this case just … ...

The news this morning brought word that the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in favor of Captain John Yates of the Miss Katie in his eight-year battle with the federal government about some undersized fish he caught. Pacific Legal Foundation filed an amicus brief supporting Captain Yates, and find much to like about the … ...

Overcriminalization and the fishy abuse of Sarbanes-Oxley The United States Supreme Court issued a good decision in Yates v. United States, in favor of fisherman John Yates.  As described in our blog,  because Yates threw some undersized fish overboard after an inspection, Yates was charged with violating the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, a post-Enron st ...

An 11-year old girl saved a woodpecker from a cat and nursed it back to health. A father and son searched for arrowheads while camping. A middle schooler ate some french fries on the subway. A snowmobiler got lost for two days in a blizzard and almost died. These stories have one thing in common–they all constitute crimes. … ...

In the Wall Street Journal, attorney and former high-ranking EPA official Bill Wehrum has an op-ed $ arguing that the Animas River spill shouldn’t lead to criminal punishment, but neither should similar accidents caused by private companies. As you’ll undoubtedly recall, last month workers for EPA accidentally breached an abandoned mine ...

PLF has filed a motion to intervene on behalf of the New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Association, New Mexico Federal Lands Council, and the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau in a case that threatens to radically expand criminal liability under the Endangered Species Act. If the case is successful, we’ll all need to quickly become … ...

Endangered species — Utah prairie dog Oral argument was held this week in People for Ethical Treatment of Property Owners v. United States Fish & Wildlife Service, the case where we are challenging the right of the federal government to regulate the Utah prairie dog, a rodent that lives only in the State of Utah … ...

As you may recall, PLF has moved to intervene in WildEarth Guardians v. DOJ, a case in which environmental groups seek to radically expand the criminal reach of the Endangered Species Act, contrary to its language and common sense. Ultimately, the case seeks to subject anyone who accidentally does anything that, unbeknownst to them, negatively  ...