Arkansas Project v. Shaw
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
775 F.3d 641 (2014)
- Written by Oni Harton, JD
Facts
The world’s only wild flock of whooping cranes, the Aransas-Wood Buffalo flock, consisted of almost 300 birds. The whooping cranes are considered an endangered species. Several whooping cranes died during a severe drought. Necropsies of two cranes that died showed signs of emaciation. Following the death of the cranes, interested parties formed a nonprofit corporation to protect the whooping cranes’ habitat, The Arkansas Project (TAP) (plaintiff). After the drought, the crane population continued to increase. TAP sued various Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) officials, including Shaw (defendant), on behalf of itself and its members, alleging violations of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). TAP alleged that the defendant’s actions, including managing water diversions in nearby river systems, violated the ESA by harming cranes in the flock and causing the death of 23 cranes. The ESA forbids takes of endangered species. TAP sought an injunction to prevent TCEQ from issuing new permits to withdraw water from the rivers that feed the estuary where the cranes make their winter home. The district court based many of its conclusions and remedies on a finding that the death toll represented the takes committed or caused by TCEQ.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)
What to do next…
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
