LSI 2010 NRD Santa Fe final conference binder 072110.pdf

Brian D. Israel of Arnold & Porter LLP Speaker 5a: 23
Parker v. Milton
Vermont Supreme Court 1998
Holding: the residents lacked standing to bring a
claim under the public trust doctrine.
“Standing is not conferred on individuals merely
by virtue of their status as beneficiaries of the
interest protected by the public trust doctrine.”
The public trust doctrine is not advanced by
permitting litigants without a personalized claim
to proceed.
Although the residents may have legitimate
grievances, their remedy is political, not judicial.
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A Few Concluding Thoughts…
The public trust doctrine – as the jurisprudential
precursor to statutory NRD claims – presents
many of the same challenges we face today.
For example, the government must establish
causation and injury from baseline, as in the
New Jersey nuclear power case.
Also, the government often has a difficult time
establishing trusteeship, as in the New York City
and North Dakota cases.
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Law Seminars International | Natural Resource Damages | 07/15/10 in Santa Fe, NM