In March, we introduced you to the Santoro family—second-generation Italian Americans and longtime builders—whose plans to develop new, affordable housing were derailed after public threats from local officials and a rushed vote to seize the family’s land through eminent domain.

Montana homeowners scored a major victory for property rights when a state court ruled in favor of the property owners trying to build new housing.

PLF attorney David McDonald celebrated the ruling, noting that “the court saw through the plaintiffs’ attempt to hijack vital constitutional rights like equal protection and due process for their own anti-housing purposes, and correctly recognized that lifting restrictions on people’s freedom to use their own property as they see fit is in no way a violation of their neighbors’ rights.”

In early April, a federal judge ruled that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service must consider economic impact when issuing extra protections for threatened species—a major victory for our clients and property owners everywhere.

Later that month, PLF attorneys delivered oral argument before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in a case about a six-year-old’s First Amendment rights.

Inspired by a recent lesson she received on the Civil Rights Movement, our client (a minor who we’ll refer to as “B.B.”) drew a picture of children holding hands, with the phrases “Black Lives Mater (sic)” and “any life,” and then gave it to a fellow classmate. B.B. would later be admonished by her elementary school principal, banned from recess, and forbidden from drawing pictures for friends.

Just after Independence Day, we launched our new Environment and Natural Resources practice—doubling down on our 50+ year-old promise to protect Americans’ freedom to use land and resources in ways that drive innovation, prosperity, and environmental stewardship.

When California voters passed Proposition 209 in 1996—banning discrimination in public education—UC San Diego outsourced its Black Alumni Scholarship Fund (BASF) to an off-campus nonprofit. Although BASF was nominally private, it maintained an inextricable partnership with UCSD.   

In July, we sued the university under the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871—a Reconstruction-era civil rights law designed to stop conspiracies between government officials and private groups that deprive Americans of equal protection. In October, UCSD fully capitulated.  

The university’s partner, San Diego Foundation, eliminated all restrictions based on race, renamed the Black Alumni Scholarship Fund, and opened eligibility to all qualified students.

In August, a federal judge struck down the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s designation of Alabama forestland as critical habitat for the black pinesnake, ruling that the agency acted arbitrarily without scientific evidence.

The ruling was a victory for the Skipper family and others—who collectively own more than 35,000 acres of forestland that was subject to the critical habitat designation—and built on PLF’s 2018 Supreme Court victory in Weyerhaeuser v. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

In November, PLF released a new short documentary, The Storyteller’s Role, telling the powerful story of Annette Hubbell—a San Diego author and actress who was told she couldn’t portray black historical figures in her one-woman play at a county library.

Instead of backing down, Annette filed a federal discrimination lawsuit against the County—standing up for the principle that the government can’t treat people differently on the basis of race.

December 5, 2025 – PLF returns to CA Supreme Court in showdown over local coastal permits    

November 18, 2025 – California family wins settlement after City charges $55K to build ADU 

November 13, 2025 – Federal court shuts down city’s attempt to make Oregon family business pay for road 

October 29, 2025 – Ranching family settles lawsuit holding government accountable for property damage 

May 6, 2025 – Victory for equality: Arkansas ends race quotas thanks to PLF lawsuits 

April 22, 2025 – You can’t ‘cease and desist’ equality