Judge sides with Enbridge Inc. in Michigan's latest effort to halt Line 5 pipeline
The international dispute over Line 5 belongs in federal court, a Michigan judge declared Thursday, dealing a critical blow to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's bid to shut down the controversial cross-border oil and gas pipeline.
It's the second time in nine months that District Court Judge Janet Neff has ruled in favour of pipeline owner Enbridge Inc., which wanted the dispute elevated to the federal level.
The first decision last November prompted Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel -- believing her only path to victory to be in state court -- to abandon the original case, turning instead to a separate, dormant, nearly identical circuit court case to try again.
Neff's disdain for that tactic was palpable throughout Thursday's ruling.
"The court concludes that (the) plaintiff's motion must fail, based on ...(the) plaintiff's attempt to gain an unfair advantage through the improper use of judicial machinery," Neff wrote.
"The court's decision ... is undergirded by (the) plaintiff's desire to engage in procedural fencing and forum manipulation."
The response late Thursday from Amber McCann, Nessel's director of communications, was even more fierce.
Nessel "remains steadfast in her commitment to protect Michigan's natural resources from the potentially devastating impact of environmental disaster," McCann said.
"The department strongly disagrees with the judge's mistaken characterization of both the law and the attorney general's approach to this and related cases."
The office is reviewing the decision and "considering next steps to pursue in the litigation," she added.
Whitmer is a Democrat and close ally of President Joe Biden whose political fortunes depend on the support of environmental groups in the state. She ordered the shutdown of Line 5 in November 2020.
She cited the risk of an ecological disaster in the Straits of Mackinac, the environmentally sensitive passage between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron where the pipeline runs underwater between the state's upper and lower peninsulas.
Enbridge pushed back hard against the original circuit court case, arguing that its core elements of energy security, cross-border commerce and international relations demanded that it be heard at the federal level -- a move Nessel strenuously tried to resist.
Late last year, Neff sided with Enbridge, prompting Whitmer and Nessel to abandon the complaint and try again, this time with a similar circuit court case that had been dormant since 2019.
This time, Nessel had hoped to head off Enbridge's jurisdictional argument on a technicality: that under federal law, cases can only be removed to federal jurisdiction within 30 days of a complaint being filed.
But Neff wasn't buying it, citing the precedent she herself established in 2021 when she ruled for Enbridge the first time.
"It would be an absurd result for the court to remand the present case and sanction a forum battle," Neff wrote.
"The 30-day rule in the removal statute is intended to assist in the equitable administration of justice and prevent gamesmanship over federal jurisdiction, but here, it is clear to the court that (the) plaintiff is the one engaging in gamesmanship."
The Line 5 pipeline ferries upwards of 540,000 barrels per day of crude oil and natural gas liquids across the Canada-U. S. border and the Great Lakes by way of a twin line that runs along the lake bed.
Critics want the line shut down, arguing it's only a matter of time before an anchor strike or technical failure triggers a catastrophe in one of the area's most important watersheds.
Proponents of Line 5 call it a vital and indispensable source of energy, especially propane, for several Midwestern states, including Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. It is also a key source of feedstock for refineries in Canada, including those that supply jet fuel to some of Canada's busiest airports.
In a statement, Enbridge described Thursday's decision as "consistent with the court's November 2021 ruling that the state's prior suit against Line 5 belonged in federal court."
That, the company said, is the correct forum for "important federal questions" about interstate commerce, pipeline safety, energy security and foreign relations.
The statement goes on to say that shutting down Line 5 would "defy an international treaty with Canada that has been in place since 1977."
Line 5 talks between the two countries under that treaty, which deals specifically with the question of cross-border pipelines, have been ongoing since late last year.
"Enbridge looks forward to a prompt resolution of this case in federal court."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 18, 2022.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
India's foreign minister reacts to murder charges, claims Canada welcomes criminals
India's Foreign Affairs Minister accused Canada of welcoming criminals from his country in response to the RCMP's recent arrests in a homicide that has roiled tensions between the two countries.
15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
Actor Bernard Hill, of 'Titanic' and 'Lord of the Rings,' has died at 79
Actor Bernard Hill, who delivered a rousing cry before leading his people into battle in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' and went down with the ship as the captain in 'Titanic,' has died.
'A tiny city:' Pro-Palestinian campus protesters organize for another week
Pro-Palestinian activists have set up tents at universities in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal, following a wave of similar protests at campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
A Holocaust survivor will mark that history differently after the horrors of Oct. 7
This year's Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins on Sunday evening in Israel, carries a heavier weight than usual for many Jews around the world.
Princess Anne lays wreath at Battle of Atlantic ceremony; honours late Queen
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members and honoured her late mother during separate ceremonies Sunday in Victoria as she wrapped up a three-day British Columbia West Coast royal visit.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Local Spotlight
15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
'A tiny city:' Pro-Palestinian campus protesters organize for another week
Pro-Palestinian activists have set up tents at universities in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal, following a wave of similar protests at campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Twin Alberta Ballet dancers retire after 15 years with company
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
Here's how one of Sask.'s largest power plants was knocked out for 73 days, and what it took to fix it
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
Quebec police officer anonymously donates kidney, changes schoolteacher's life
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Canada's oldest hat store still going strong after 90 years
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Road closed in Oak Bay, B.C., so elephant seal can cross
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.