North Dakota ranchers’ $300,000 legal-fee fight heads to US Supreme Court
A group of North Dakota ranchers who spent nearly $300,000 fighting a pipeline company over land compensation have taken their dispute over legal expenses to the US Supreme Court. Although they reached a settlement, an appeals court ruled that the company need not cover their legal costs. The Supreme Court will hear the case on November 9.
A group of North Dakota ranchers and a natural gas pipeline company are facing the US Supreme Court over a disagreement about who is responsible for a $300,000 legal bill. The dispute began when the ranchers challenged the compensation offered by WBI Energy Transmission for using their land to build a pipeline. After reaching a settlement, an appeals court ruled that the company did not have to pay the landowners' legal fees.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the case, Hoffmann v. WBI Energy Transmission, on November 9. The ranchers argue that federal eminent domain authority should not exempt private companies from state compensation laws, while the federal government contends that the Natural Gas Act grants sufficient protections.
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