Legal Digest

A ruling from the State of Washington by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals suggests that local governments in California may want to review their sign ordinances. >>read more

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has blocked development of a geothermal power plant on federal land in Siskiyou County because federal agencies did not complete an environmental review of leases for the land underlying the proposed power plant. >>read more

A dispute between owners of property in northern San Diego County and a public utility district is headed for a new trial after the Fourth District Court of Appeal overturned a $2.3 million award of damages and compensation to the property owners. >>read more

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's determination that listing the Sierra Nevada Mountain yellow-legged frog as an endangered species was "warranted but precluded" has been rejected by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. >>read more

A state appellate court panel has chastised the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF) for ignoring the California Environmental Quality Act during reviews of timber harvest plans. >>read more

A taxpayer lawsuit challenging the City of Seaside's discounted sale of 105 acres of the closed Fort Ord military base to housing developers appears headed for trial. >>read more

A federal court has ordered Sutter County to grant a conditional use permit for a Sikh temple. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the county violated the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) when the county rejected two use permit applications for the temple. >>read more

A water credit transfer approved for a developer by the City of Monterey and the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District has been struck down by an appellate court, which ruled that the city's and the district's reliance on an exemption from environmental review was faulty. >>read more

A state project to convert 225 acres of Colusa County farmland into wetlands and waterfowl habitat is not exempt from environmental review, the Third District Court of Appeal has ruled. >>read more

Preservationists have won at least a temporary victory regarding a big-box home improvement store that is proposed for the site of an historic IBM building in San Jose. >>read more

A local agency formation commission may impose as a condition on its approval of the incorporation of a new city the requirement that voters support a general tax funding the new city, the attorney general's office has concluded. >>read more

The California Supreme Court has recently accepted two land use cases and ordered an appellate court decision regarding fees to be depublished. >>read more

The habitat conservation plan for the rapidly growing Natomas Basin in Sacramento and southern Sutter counties has been upheld by a state appellate court. >>read more

The life of a tentative map for a subdivision may be extended for up to five years if the map is subject to a local development moratorium, but the map does not live on if the moratorium continues for more than five years, the First District Court of Appeal has ruled. >>read more