SmartBrief
Confirm favorite deletion?
Administrative Law Keyed to Lawson
United States Army Corps of Engineers v. Hawkes Co., Inc.
Citation:
576 U.S. 1129, 136 S.Ct. 1807, 195 L.Ed.2d 77 (2016)Facts
Hawkes Co., Inc. and its affiliates sought to mine peat from wetlands on property they owned and operated in Minnesota. Before beginning operations, they sought a jurisdictional determination from the Army Corps of Engineers to determine if the property contained “waters of the United States” subject to Clean Water Act jurisdiction, which would require them to obtain a permit before discharging pollutants. After site inspections and discussions, the Corps issued an approved jurisdictional determination stating that the property contained “waters of the United States” because the wetlands had a “significant nexus” to the Red River of the North, located 120 miles away. Obtaining the required permit would be expensive and time-consuming, potentially costing over $100,000 and taking years. Alternatively, proceeding without a permit could result in significant civil and criminal penalties. Hawkes sought judicial review of the jurisdictional determination under the Administrative Procedure Act.
Only StudyBuddy Pro offers the complete Case Brief Anatomy*
Access the most important case brief elements for optimal case understanding.
*Case Brief Anatomy includes: Brief Prologue, Complete Case Brief, Brief Epilogue
- The Brief Prologue provides necessary case brief introductory information and includes:
Topic:
Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.Parties:
Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.Procedural Posture & History:
Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.:
A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.Case Doctrines, Acts, Statutes, Amendments and Treatises:
Identifies and Defines Legal Authority used in this case.
- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
Brief Facts:
A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.Rule of Law:
Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.Facts:
What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case.Issue(s):
Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.Holding:
Shares the Court's answer to the legal questions raised in the issue.Concurring / Dissenting Opinions:
Includes valuable concurring or dissenting opinions and their key points.Reasoning and Analysis:
Identifies the chain of argument(s) which led the judges to rule as they did.
- The Brief Prologue closes the case brief with important forward-looking discussion and includes:
Policy:
Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.Court Direction:
Shares where the Court went from here for this case.