United States Sixth Circuit

In the parties' third action over a land-use dispute between coal companies and a pipeline company involving the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) grant of a permit to the pipeline company to build a natural gas pipeline over the coal companies' mine, district court's grant of pipeline company's motion to dismiss the coal companies' suit to enjoin the building of the pipeline and to recover tort damages from the pipeline company caused by construction of the pipeline is affirmed where: 1) with respect to the coal companies' claims for equitable relief of one sort or another, they may not seek what amounts to a second round of collateral review of FERC's order, as the FERC has issued its final order and the coal companies have appealed that order to the D.C. Circuit, and the matter lies within that court's exclusive jurisdiction; and 2) coal companies' request for money damages for conversion are already before the district court in the condemnation action provided by section 7(h) of the Natural Gas Act.

Appellate Information

• Argued 08/05/2010
• Decided 09/29/2010
• Published 09/29/2010

Judges

• SUTTON

Court

• United States Sixth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Mark S. Stemm, Gregory D. Brunton