After a brief hiatus, incidental take of migratory birds will again be a federal crime beginning December 3, 2021. Less than 10 months after instituting a final rule declaring that incidental take of birds is not subject to...more
In a proposed rule published May 7, 2021, the Biden Administration seeks to withdraw the Trump Administration’s Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) liability rule. The MBTA liability rule was published as a final rule on January...more
The Biden Administration is moving quickly to undo the Trump Administration’s Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) liability rule. Published as a final rule on January 7, 2021, this rule for the first time supplied a uniform...more
In a long-unfolding saga, on January 7, 2021, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) published its final rule that will at long last establish a clear regulatory definition of the scope of liability under the Migratory Bird...more
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (the “Service”) on February 3, 2020 issued a proposed rule that for the first time would supply a uniform regulatory definition of the scope of liability under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act...more
National environmental groups recently filed a pair of new lawsuits in New York federal district court seeking to expand the scope of liability for “incidental take” under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”). The...more
The U.S. Court of the Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently ruled that the criminal prohibition on killing or injuring birds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”) “only prohibits intentional acts (not omissions) that...more