Oral argument was held on October 31, 2000 in this important land use case. On July 25, 2000, WLF had filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of itself and the Allied Educational Foundation, urging it to reverse a lower court decision upholding federal jurisdiction over isolated wetlands under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution merely because migratory birds were observed on the land. In its brief, WLF argued that the Corps’ so-called “migratory bird rule” exceeds the authority conferred on the federal government under the Commerce Clause. The actual or potential presence of migratory birds on private property does not involve commercial transactions or economic activity, WLF argued.
