United States First Circuit

In a challenge to a lease of tribal land to a developer in order to construct a liquefied natural gas terminal on the land, dismissal of the suit is reversed and remanded where, on the basis of the reversal of position by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, plaintiffs have standing to pursue their environmental and Leasing Act claims, those claims are ripe for review and plaintiffs did not fail to exhaust their administrative remedies.

Appellate Information

• Decided 09/14/2007
• Published 09/14/2007

Judges

• TORRUELLA, Circuit Judge., Before TORRUELLA and LIPEZ, Circuit Judges, and FUSTÉ, District Judge.

Court

• United States First Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Patrick A. Parenteau, with whom Justin E. Kolber and David K. Mears, of the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic, Vermont Law School, were on brief, for appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• M. Alice Thurston, Attorney, Environment and Natural Resources Division, U.S. Department of Justice, with whom Matthew J. McKeown, Acting Assistant Attorney General, Caroline M. Blanco, Sara E. Culley, Rebecca J. Riley, Elizabeth Ann Peterson, John Harrington Assistant Regional Solicitor, Department of the Interior, and Stephen L. Simpson, Assistant Solicitor for Trust Responsibility, Department of the Interior, were on brief, for appellees.