Professor Frank Comments on 'Federal Defendant Rule' for NY Times
Professor Richard Frank commented for the New York Times on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit's "federal defendant rule," which prevents anyone other than the federal government from defending claims under the National Environmental Policy Act, the main legal mechanism for challenging government actions that affect the environment. The rule, unique to the Ninth Circuit, will be at issue in Wilderness Society v. U.S. Forest Service, scheduled to be argued before an en banc panel of 11 judges on December 13.
Professor Frank said that on the whole, the rule is "disturbing and misplaced," and effectively stops interested parties from making perfectly valid arguments that could help the court reach better decisions.
Frank, a 1974 graduate of King Hall, recently was named as founding Director of the new California Environmental Law and Policy Center at UC Davis School of Law.