Judge retains jurisdiction in lawsuit over Enbridge pipeline
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — A federal judge Thursday kept jurisdiction over a lawsuit seeking to close an oil pipeline crossing a section of the Great Lakes, rejecting Michigan’s effort to shift the case to state court. U.S. District Judge Janet Neff sided a second time with Enbridge Energy, which contends regulation of its Line 5 is a federal matter and federal courts should handle legal arguments about whether it should continue operating. “The Court reinforces the importance of a federal forum in deciding the disputed and substantial federal issues at stake, with uniformity and consistency,” Neff said in a written decision. Neff, based in Grand Rapids, reached the same conclusion last year after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer filed suit to enforce her order to decommission the 69-year-old pipeline. The judge’s ruling Thursday involved a separate 2019 case by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, also seeking a shutdown. Line 5 is part of a network that moves Canadian oil and natural gas liquids used in propane to refineries in both nations.
Judge retains jurisdiction in lawsuit over Enbridge pipeline
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — A federal judge Thursday kept jurisdiction over a lawsuit seeking to close an oil pipeline crossing a section of the Great Lakes, rejecting Michigan’s effort to shift the case to state court. U.S. District Judge Janet Neff sided a second time with Enbridge Energy, which contends regulation of its Line 5 is a federal matter and federal courts should handle legal arguments about whether it should continue operating. “The Court reinforces the importance of a federal forum in deciding the disputed and substantial federal issues at stake, with uniformity and consistency,” Neff said in a written decision. Neff, based in Grand Rapids, reached the same conclusion last year after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer filed suit to enforce her order to decommission the 69-year-old pipeline. The judge’s ruling Thursday involved a separate 2019 case by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, also seeking a shutdown. Line 5 is part of a network that moves Canadian oil and natural gas liquids used in propane to refineries in both nations.