Need Help Tahoe Group (Lawsuit)

[speedy]

Tahoe Group (Lawsuit)

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JUNE 26, 2014
[COLOR=#00FF00 !important]Contact: Jacquelyne “Bebe” Theisen Phone: 530-888-8302
E-Mail: FriendsofTahoeLawsuit@gmail.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


USDA TAHOE NATIONAL FOREST SENDS OHV GROUPS A MESSAGE
Pacific Legal [COLOR=#00FF00 !important]Foundation[/COLOR], Friends of Tahoe Forest Access et al v. Tahoe National Forest Lawsuit Update


AUBURN, CA - In an effort to discourage OHV groups from filing lawsuits against the Forest Service, Tahoe National Forest and the USDA levied outrageous and unreasonable fees against the groups for “copies” of the Administrative Record delivered to the Federal District Court.

Background: In an effort to reverse over 800 miles of illegal road closures in the Tahoe National Forest's 2009 Travel Management decision, the Friends of Tahoe Forest Access et al, sought the counsel of the Pacific Legal Foundation. By what some would call a miracle, this legal powerhouse, a[COLOR=#00FF00 !important]watchdog[/COLOR] of the little guy, agreed to take the case.

Completely outrageous charges for a very simple Summary Judgment were levied against Friends of Tahoe Forest Access (FoTFA), Friends of Greenhorn (FOG), Nevada County Woods Riders (NCWR), Grass Valley 4Wheel Drive Club (GV4WDC), WeBilt 4WD Club (WB4WDC), High Sierra Motorcycle Club (HSMC) and 2 individuals in the case brought by the Pacific Legal Foundation last month.

When the bloated invoices were protested by Pacific Legal[COLOR=#00FF00 !important]Foundations[/COLOR] Attorney Ted Hadzi-Antich, Judge Mendez sided with the Federal Government and upheld the charges levied against the OHV groups in the amount of $14,875.00. Judge Mendez stated in the appeal denial that it is legal to bill for direct costs.

The charges included $275.00 in fees and over $14,600.00 in printing costs (invoices available upon request). Pacific Legal Foundation charged it's clients only $562.00 for only the relevant information required to prepare for the case. The Justice department found it necessary to not only print one entire copy of the Administrative Record, but a second electronic copy was created and delivered to Judge Mendez of the Federal District Court. They are required to provide only one digitized copy to the court, instead they chose to produce 2 - Charging the groups for copies is discretionary. So the message is clear.

In preparatory meetings prior to filing the suit in Federal District Court, the question was posed by the Plaintiffs to Pacific Legal Foundation's counsel, if it were possible that the Federal Government would bill us for legal expenses, the answer was it was within the rights of the government to bill for expenses, but that in the history of these types of legal battles, it was very rare, highly unlikely, and had never happened in Mr. Hadzi-Antich's 30+ year legal history.

The case has now been appealed to the 9th circuit Court of Appeals. On May 19th, 2014, Pacific Legal Foundation moved one step closer to seeing this case “all the way through to[COLOR=#00FF00 !important]the Supreme[/COLOR] Court”.

To our fellow off roading public, the groups above do not have the means to cover this egregious expense, and are asking that we reach out to those who utilize roads and trails in the Tahoe National Forest to do what they can to help us cover this cost. It is important that we not be discouraged by this “message”, and that we send our own message - that the US Forest Service cannot deter us from taking legal action in the future.

A PayPal Account has been set up for electronic donations which can be gifted to FriendsOfTahoeLawsuit@gmail.com, while checks can be made Payable to Grass Valley 4-Wheelers Inc. and sent to P.O. Box 824 Grass Valley, CA 95945. If our forest users [COLOR=#00FF00 !important]can donate[/COLOR] the amount of what it would cost for 1 tank of fuel or a weekend [COLOR=#00FF00 !important]in the forest[/COLOR], we could easily reach our goal of $15,000.00. The government is charging interest on this bill, and it will accrue until paid.

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For more information on this release or to [COLOR=#00FF00 !important]schedule[/COLOR] and[COLOR=#00FF00 !important]interview[/COLOR] with Jacquelyne “Bebe” Theisen, please call 530-888-8302 or e-mail at FriendsOfTahoeLawsuit@gmail.com.[/COLOR]
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[LagunaH1]

*bump*

-Just wondering how this is going? I really don't like reading that the government is trying to bully, squash and scare groups of volunteers. Makes me mad.

 

[bebe]

*bump*

-Just wondering how this is going? I really don't like reading that the government is trying to bully, squash and scare groups of volunteers. Makes me mad.

So far we are at $7,075.00 Raised. About half way there.

Even if you only have a few bucks to give it means a lot to the whole community.

Thank to all who have donated!!

 

[abearden]

Wish we had more mega-rich backers like the greenies do. That'd be a drop in the bucket.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

there's several court decisions which state that the "costs" must be actual costs - and $14,000 could be the actual cost - but it seems quite high. However, might I suggest a better strategy? File a bar complaint against the Attorney representing the USFS - they have to aver that the costs are actual... and honestly, they could be... but again, it seems high.

Alternatively, perhaps ask a better question in discovery? Or seek discovery mediation, counsel should have worked this out before.

I'm torn on this, I spend more time fighting stupid discovery requests - and if I could, I'd have no problem billing if the question asked for an extreme amount of work - but by the same token, Courts are charged with mediating disputes - and a dispute over discovery really isn't the dispute they're supposed to be spending their time mediating over.

 

[bebe]

I can send you the printing invoices if you like. It's not so much whether the costs are legit, it' that they don't charge the green groups for the same types of fees. Ever.

We got nailed because they know we don't have the cash to pay like the Sierra Club or the CBD. They want us to back down so they sent a message where they thought they could make us hurt.

Believe me, it will not deter us, we will all dig into our personal savings to cover what we can't raise. It will hurt, but we just can't back down.

And more importantly, it's important we band together as a community, because if the SoCal folks were to lose a trail like Dusy or Holcomb, you would want us to be there for you. And we would be.

 

[LagunaH1]

I may have missed it, but what are the next steps?

 

[Neo]

*bump*

I really don't like reading that the government is trying to bully, squash and scare groups of volunteers. Makes me mad.

that makes me just as mad as when the Gov. buses protesters in for healthcare rallys and governor Walker protests. :gaah:

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

I can send you the printing invoices if you like. It's not so much whether the costs are legit, it' that they don't charge the green groups for the same types of fees. Ever.

We got nailed because they know we don't have the cash to pay like the Sierra Club or the CBD. They want us to back down so they sent a message where they thought they could make us hurt.

Believe me, it will not deter us, we will all dig into our personal savings to cover what we can't raise. It will hurt, but we just can't back down.

And more importantly, it's important we band together as a community, because if the SoCal folks were to lose a trail like Dusy or Holcomb, you would want us to be there for you. And we would be.

simply send me the case caption - most importantly the case number, I'll look it up on Pacer

 

[bebe]

simply send me the case caption - most importantly the case number, I'll look it up on Pacer

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

FRIENDS OF TAHOE FOREST ACCESS, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
v.
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF
AGRICULTURE, et al.,
Defendants,
THE WILDERNESS SOCIETY, et al.,
Defendants-Intervenors.

No. 2:12-cv-01876-JAM-CKD

 

[bebe]

I may have missed it, but what are the next steps?

We have filed an appeal in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
The new deadlines are as follows:
Government’s Answering Brief: August 28, 2014;
Intervenors’ Answering Brief: September 11, 2014;
Our Reply Brief: December 2, 2014.

After that we get a date for Oral Argument.

Costs of moving forward are small in the Ninth Circuit, as the only things left to do are to prepare for and participate in the oral argument, for which a date has not yet been set.

Attorney's quote for future expenses:

But if we win in the Ninth Circuit, it is a safe bet that the government will appeal to the Supreme Court. Costs in the Supreme Court can be high, and my best estimate at this time would be in the range of $2,000 to $8,000, depending on who brings the appeal and whether the petition for certiorari is granted.