Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms
United States Supreme Court
561 U.S. 139, 130 S.Ct. 2743 (2010)
- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) deregulated certain genetically engineered alfalfa plants. A number of organic alfalfa farmers, Geertson Seed Farms, among other parties, (plaintiffs) brought suit claiming that the APHIS decision violated the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. The plaintiffs claimed that because of the ruling, they would have to incur significant costs to test their plants for contamination. They also claim that the ruling would require them to incur costs to decrease the likelihood that their plants are infected. The district court found in favor of the plaintiffs and granted permanent injunctive relief. The court of appeals affirmed. Monsanto (defendant) appealed, claiming, among other things, that the plaintiffs lacked constitutional standing to bring the claim. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Alito, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 810,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 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.
