From our private database of 37,200+ case briefs...

Sackett v. EPA

United States Supreme Court

132 S.Ct. 1367, 566 U.S. 120 (2012)

Facts

Michael and Chantell Sackett (plaintiffs) filed suit in federal district court against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (defendant) under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. § 706(2)(A), seeking declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent enforcement of an EPA-issued Compliance Order (the Order). The Order asserted that the Sacketts placed fill material on their 2/3-acre vacant lot without a permit and in violation of the Clean Water Act (CWA), as the Sacketts’ lot was located adjacent to a large lake. The Order directed the Sacketts to restore the site in accordance with an EPA-created Restoration Work Plan. If the Sacketts refused or failed to comply, civil monetary penalties up to $75,000 per day could be assessed. The district court dismissed the Sacketts’ claims and the order was affirmed by the court of appeals. The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari to review.

Rule of Law

The rule of law is the black letter law upon which the court rested its decision. To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

Issue

The issue section includes the dispositive legal issue in the case phrased as a question. To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

Holding and Reasoning (Scalia, J.)

The holding and reasoning section includes:

A "yes" or "no" answer to the question framed in the issue section;
A summary of the majority or plurality opinion, using the CREAC method; and
The procedural disposition (e.g., reversed and remanded, affirmed, etc.).

To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

What to do next…

Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.
You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 630,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.
Unlock this case brief Read our student testimonials
Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.
Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.
Learn about our approach Read more about Quimbee

Here's why 630,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 37,200 briefs, keyed to 984 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.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Here's why 630,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
37,200 briefs - keyed to 984 casebooks
Uniform format for every case brief
Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
Top-notch customer support