High Roberts Slideshow
Litigation and Advocacy
Land Use - Defeat of McDonald's Corporation. Soon after our founding, the Crag Law Center represented the Richmond Neighborhood Association and a local activist in a challenge to the siting of a new McDonald's in a vacant building with a "grandfathered" drive-through on Hawthorne Boulevard. Bolstered by almost 10,000 petition signatures from individuals committed to boycotting a new McDonald's and weekly protests at the site, the Crag Law Center convinced the City of Portland, several city commissioners and ultimately McDonald's that they could not open a restaurant with a drive-through at the site, because it was prohibited by the local zoning code. After careful review of city records, the Crag Law Center discovered that illegal changes had been made to the drive-through, while the local media and neighborhood had assumed that it was an allowed use of the property. The local residents were concerned about traffic and safety issues, as well as noise, garbage, McDonald's corporate track record and the havoc that McDonald's monoculture wreaks on our health, the environment and the aesthetics of the neighborhood. McDonald's backed out of the deal and subsequently abandoned plans to use the site.
Clean Water Act Enforcement. The Crag Law Center represents local residents and conservation groups in Clean Water Act enforcement actions designed to protect Oregon's water quality. In one case, the Crag Law Center pursued the owner and operator of a mobile home facility that was dumping heavy concentrations of chlorine into a tributary of the Rogue River and is currently working with the owner and operator to implement an effective treatment system that will protect water quality in one of the most important watersheds in Southern Oregon. The Crag Law Center has also represented local groups pursuing Portland Meadows for Clean Water Act violations resulting in the contamination of the Columbia Slough. The Slough is an urban waterway in North Portland that has been the focus of long-term restoration efforts by local conservationists. In addition, the Crag Law Center has assisted another client with a thorough analysis of the complex corporate legal structures of an owner and operator of a large concentrated animal feeding operation. The owner and operator has for years flouted the law and used a complex corporate shell game to split assets and liabilities among various entities in an effort to evade and inequitably limit the effectiveness of the mandates of the Clean Water Act. All of our actions are examples of how citizens can enforce the law when companies make blatant business decisions to violate the Clean Water Act while the state agencies sit on their hands.
SLAPP Defense. The Crag Law Center represented a land use watchdog group in Southern Oregon on a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation ("SLAPP") filed by a local landowner unhappy with the effective monitoring activities of the watchdog group. The group foiled the landowner's plot to develop land zoned exclusively for farm use by revealing that the landowner's soil scientist submitted soil data that suspiciously conflicted with all historic data. Due in large part to the Crag Law Center's litigation philosophy of constant and equitable engagement before and during the commencement of litigation, the Crag Law Center defeated the SLAPPer's claim for more than $10,000 in attorney fees. The SLAPPer filed an appeal, and the Crag Law Center shepherded this case through the Oregon Court of Appeals.
Toxics. The Crag Law Center has been assisting Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides with the implementation of Oregon's landmark pesticide reporting legislation in NCAP's efforts to keep the new law's effectiveness from being watered down by the Oregon Department of Agriculture. In addition, the Crag Law Center has been engaging the City of Portland in discussions on the environmental impacts of its Park and Recreation Department's pesticide application program in an effort to truly make it an example of a cutting edge environmentally friendly program. The Crag Law Center helped NCAP secure pesticide-free parks in the City of Portland.
Forest Protection. The Crag Law Center has been helping local residents, whistleblowers, and locally-run conservation organizations on challenges to government land management. The Crag Law Center is assisting these clients in wading through government documents and helping these groups protect old growth forests, roadless areas, aquatic habitat and recreational opportunities by ensuring the proper application of our federal environmental laws. For example, the Crag Law Center represented the Gifford Pinchot Task Force and Conservation Northwest in a successful challenge against the United States Forest Service for failing to consider the effects to old-growth dependent species resulting from clearcutting ancient forests in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. In another case, the Crag Law Center successfully represented a community group in a suit against the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, alleging that the agency failed to properly account for harmful effects to the threatened bull trout resulting from existing and planned clearcuts of old-growth in the Willamette National Forest. Judge Redden issued a favorable decision in that case and the action protected some of the last remaining habitat for bull trout West of the Cascade Crest.
Wetlands. The Crag Law Center represents local residents and a local watershed council with respect to the administrative appeal of a permit to fill wetlands issued by the Oregon Division of State Lands. The developer received a fill permit for a large-scale development of trophy homes by parsing out various stages of one project into discrete component. The application asserts that the permit is to be issued for a freshwater wetland, when in reality the developer intends to place fill in a sensitive estuary that provides habitat for chinook and coho salmon. This case and others we have worked on present complex issues under Oregon's wetlands regulations as well as the Endangered Species Act.
Protection of Alpine Ecosystems. The Crag Law Center is representing a broad coalition of citizen-based groups including the Mazamas and the Friends of Mt. Hood in watchdogging development of a local ski are on the flanks of Mt. Hood. Years of mismanagement resulted in horrible erosion and impacts to fragile alpine wetlands. The Crag Law Center recently stepped in to assist in continuing the fight to protect Oregon's alpine gem by ensuring enforcement of water quality, water quantity, wetlands, land use and national forest management laws.
The Crag Law Center has handled legal challenges under the National Forest Management Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the 1872 Mining Law and other local, state and federal natural resources and environmental laws. Please check back for further updates in the future or subscribe to the Crag Law Center electronic newsletter.
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