- Weyerhauser (NYSE:WY) wins a victory in the U.S. Supreme Court in a property rights case that limits the federal government's power to designate private land as protected habitat for endangered species, in this instance the endangered dusky gopher frog.
- The court unanimously tossed a previous ruling by the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that had favored the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, finding the lower court gave the government too much leeway.
- The U.S. government identified Louisiana land partly owned by WY as meeting the criteria for the frog's habitat under the federal Endangered Species Act.
- But Chief Justice Roberts wrote that the appeals court's broad definition of what can be defined as "critical habitat" under the Act was incorrect, citing limits on the scope of government authority to make such determinations.
- Roberts also said the lower court must consider the decision that the potential economic costs to WY were not “disproportionate” to the conservation benefits.
- Now read: Lumber Halves In Value - Weyerhaeuser Revisited
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