In Case You Missed It
Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger’s attorneys also regularly write for other publications. Some recent articles that may be of interest include: Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine: Black Lives Matter as Government Speech Daily Journal: Restoring California’s Leadership in Setting Tailpipe Emissions Standards Daily Journal: Competition and Collusion on the Road to Clean Cars ABA Environment, Energy, and […]
Spreading Good Cheer at the End of Another Challenging Year
As last year drew to a close, Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger continued its efforts to identify and make charitable contributions to groups engaged in environmental justice and anti-racism work. “It is part of our firm’s ethos to support non-profit organizations engaged in environmental justice, anti-racism, and empowerment work, and we are committed to continuing our […]
SMW Attorney Teaches Land Use Law at Stanford Law School
SMW partner Andrew Schwartz is once again teaching Land Use Law at Stanford Law School for the fall quarter 2021-2022. The course focuses on the pragmatic (more than theoretical) aspects of contemporary land use law and policy, including the tools and historical/legal foundation of modern land use law; zoning and General Plans; the process of land development; affordable housing; growth […]
San Diego Superior Court Ruling Stops Sprawl Development in Fire-Prone Area
Photo: Quino checkerspot butterfly Earlier this month, the San Diego County Superior Court reversed San Diego County’s approval of the Otay Ranch Village 14 project, a proposed development that would have paved over critical wildlife habitat while building 1,100 homes on fire-prone land east of Chula Vista. In a consolidated cases brought by a coalition of environmental groups and the People of California, the court ruled that the […]
Tribes Look to Expand Cultural Burning to Restore Traditional Practices and Address Catastrophic Wildfire Threats
People indigenous to California have proactively ignited the landscape to manage plants and wildlife, provide community protection, control insects and disease, and engage in cultural and religious practices since time immemorial. Experts estimate that before 1800, between 4.5 million and 12 million acres of the state burned annually, through some combination of lightening and cultural burning.
Karuk Tribe Releases “Good Fire” Report, Addressing Barriers and Solutions to Increasing Cultural Burning
SMW Attorneys Sara Clark and Andrew Miller, together with cultural fire practitioner Don Hankins, authored Good Fire: Current Barriers to the Expansion of Cultural Burning and Prescribed Fire in California and Recommended Solutions for the Karuk Tribe. The report, which has been extensively cited in the media and by policymakers, examines the specific challenges faced […]
Quarry Expansion Requires Thorough Environmental Review
The firm prevails in litigation challenging Sonoma County’s environmental review of a rock quarry expansion project near the small town of Forestville. (Forestville Citizens for Sensible Growth v. County of Sonoma (2009).)
Protecting Urban Public Lands & Elevating Community Voices
The firm represents Orange County Communities for Responsible Development, a community-labor alliance, in a challenge to the City of Santa Ana’s sale of public lands. While the challenge is underway, the state legislature adopts new Surplus Land Act provisions protecting the public’s interest in such lands. Many of the Santa Ana sales are halted, giving […]
Appellate Court Invalidates Ordinance Streamlining Oil Drilling in Kern County
The firm prevails in the court of appeal in a CEQA challenge to a Kern County ordinance, adopted in 2015, that would have streamlined the permitting of 72,000 new oil wells throughout the County including near low-income communities. The court directs that the approval of the ordinance be rescinded. (King and Gardiner Farms, LLC. v. […]
Warehouse Approval in Residential Neighborhood Rescinded
After the firm files a CEQA lawsuit challenging the City of Fresno’s approval of a large warehouse distribution center across the street from a residential community, the City rescinds the approval in 2019. (Southern Central Neighbors United v. City of Fresno.)