On February 24, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in Atlantic Coast Pipeline LLC v. Cowpasture River Preservation Association, a case evaluating the U.S. Forest Service’s authority to grant rights-of-way under the Mineral Leasing Act of a natural gas pipeline that would traverse the Appalachian Trail 600 feet below ground. Beveridge & Diamond principals Jamie Auslander, John Cruden, and Peter Schaumberg filed an amicus brief on behalf of the National Association of Manufacturers and twenty other trade associations, supporting reversal of the Fourth Circuit’s novel interpretation of two federal statutes to bar the pipeline project. 

Hear key takeaways from the case, presented by B&D's John Cruden and Allyn Stern.