Past Cases
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) promulgated an Interim Final Rule regarding a horse slaughter inspection system. Specifically, the USDA had created a "fee for service" inspection system designed to facilitate the continued transport of tens of thousands of American horses for human consumption abroad. The Animal Welfare Institute and its co-plaintiffs challenged the rule on the grounds that it violated requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the Animal Welfare Institute and its co-plaintiffs. An appeal was filed by Cavel International but the appeal was later dismissed as moot when the company went out of business due to the passage of legislation in Illinois banning horse slaughter.
The Animal Welfare Institute and its co-plaintiffs brought claims against Beech Ridge Energy, LLC and its parent company for past and future takes of endangered Indiana bats as a result of the construction, turbine erection, and operation activities of an industrial wind facility without an incidental take permit, arguing that such activities constitute violations of the Endangered Species Act.
The Animal Welfare Institute and its co-plaintiffs brought claims pursuant to the Endangered Species Act and other laws against BP for burning critically endangered sea turtles as part of its clean-up efforts in the Gulf of Mexico following the massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The animal welfare and conservation groups subsequently amended their complaint to include the U.S. Coast Guard as a defendant for directing BP’s containment activities.
