Standing in a Federal Agency's Shoes: Should Third-Party Action Affect Redressability under the National Environmental Policy Act?

摘要

Through the doctrine of constitutional standing, federal courts have consistently attempted to limit their jurisdiction to claims in which they can redress the plaintiff's injury. This determination becomes more complicated when a third party asserts that it would "replace" the defendant's role and cause the same injury to the plaintiff that the defendant would have caused. Courts have generally responded by assessing if this replacement will actually occur. However, courts have neither clearly articulated nor consistently applied the standards that govern this replaceability inquiry. The replaceability approach also elides more fundamental questions of whether defendants should be able to escape judicial review simply because other parties might also commit the same harm.