Palmyra Pacific Seafoods, L.L.C. v. United States

80 Fed. Cl. 228, 2008 U.S. Claims LEXIS 19, 2008 WL 215826
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedJanuary 22, 2008
DocketNo. 07-35L
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 80 Fed. Cl. 228 (Palmyra Pacific Seafoods, L.L.C. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Palmyra Pacific Seafoods, L.L.C. v. United States, 80 Fed. Cl. 228, 2008 U.S. Claims LEXIS 19, 2008 WL 215826 (uscfc 2008).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

MILLER, Judge.

This case is before the court after argument and supplemental briefing on defendant’s motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted or, in the alternative, its motion for summary judgment. Defendant contends that plaintiffs have no compensable property interest that could have been taken by lawful action of the Federal Government. The issue for decision is whether the Government, working in tandem with an influential environmental lobby, appropriated plaintiffs’ property interest by prohibiting plaintiffs from commercial fishing off-island, which had the effect of rendering worthless plaintiffs’ licenses for an on-island facility to support commercial fishing.

FACTS

The following facts are drawn from the complaint or are neutral facts that are neither disputed nor relied upon for decision. Palmyra Atoll (“Palmyra”) and Kingman Reef are territories of the United States located approximately 1,000 nautical miles south of Hawaii and thirty-three nautical miles apart from each other. Palmyra and Kingman Reef are surrounded by a 200-nautical mile United States Exclusive Economic Zone (“EEZ”) that excludes foreign fishing vessels. During World War II, the President of the United States issued an Executive Order establishing a Naval Defensive Sea Area and Naval Airspace Reservation over the territorial waters from the high-water mark out to a three-mile boundary surrounding Palmyra. Exec. Order No. 8682, 6 Fed.Reg. 1015 (Feb. 14, 1941), discontinued by Exec. Order No. 9881, 3 C.F.R. 662 (1943-1948). The United States at that time established a naval base on Palmyra, including an airstrip, dock, harbor, and base [229]*229camp. On August 25, 2000, the Navy transferred custody of the Kingman Reef and surrounding reefs to the Department of the Interior (“Interior”), pursuant to the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act. Def.’s Br. filed July, 13, 2007, Ex. C.

Until a late 2000 sale to The Nature Conservancy, the Fullard-Leo family held title to the emergent land of Palmyra. Prior to July 1, 1999, the Fullard-Leo family assigned to Palmyra Development Co., Inc. (“PDC”), certain rights to Palmyra, including the right to convey an exclusive license to establish commercial fishing operations on Palmyra and to use the Palmyra airstrip, dock, harbor, and base camp for commercial fishing operations. On July 1, 1999, PDC entered into a license agreement with Palmyra Pacific Enterprises, L.L.C. (“PPE”), granting PPE the exclusive right to establish a commercial fishing operation on Palmyra and to use the airstrip, dock, harbor, and base camp for its operations. On November 17, 2000, PDC and the Ful-lard-Leo family executed a written consent allowing PPE to assign its rights under the license to PPE Limited Partnership (“PPELP”) and allowing PPELP to subli-cense its rights to Palmyra Pacific Seafoods, L.L.C. (“PPS”). In 2000, pursuant to its sublicense, PPS made substantial economic investments toward establishing, developing, and operating a commercial fishing enterprise on Palmyra by improving real property, buddings, and facilities and commencing commercial fishing in the EEZ.1

On January 18, 2001, the Secretary of Interior signed Order No. 3224, designating as a National Wildlife Refuge the tidal lands, submerged lands, and waters out to a twelve-nautical mile distance surrounding Palmyra, and Order No. 3223, designating as a National Wildlife Refuge Kingman Reef and surrounding submerged lands and waters out to a distance of twelve nautical miles. See Am. Compl. filed Apr. 13, 2007, Exs. G, I. On January 24, 2001, Interior published regulations closing Palmyra and Kingman Reef to commercial fishing. 66 Fed.Reg. 7660-02 (Jan. 24, 2001). In 2003 The Nature Conservancy conveyed 416 acres of the emergent land of Palmyra to the United States to be included in the refuge. In September 2006 The Nature Conservancy conveyed an additional 28 acres for inclusion in the refuge.

Plaintiffs PPS, PPE, and PPELP complain that these wildlife refuge designations and accompanying regulations issued by Interior have “directly confiscated, taken, and rendered wholly and completely worthless” plaintiffs’ property interests “embodied and reflected in the Palmyra License and the Palmyra Sublicense” (collectively, the “licenses”). Am. Compl. H37. Specifically, plaintiffs charge that “[t]he prohibition on public access and on commercial fishing resulting from the Palmyra Designation, the Kingman Designation and the related regulations rendered worthless Plaintiffs’ property interests in (i) the Palmyra License, (ii) the Palmyra Sublicense, (iii) the improvements Plaintiffs made to the commercial fishing facilities on Palmyra, and (iv) Plaintiffs’ commercial fishing enterprise” taking “valuable property interests of the Plaintiffs for a public use without payment of just compensation.” Id. Iff 38, 39. Plaintiffs allege both a categorical and regulatory taking. Id. Iff 47, 52.

By order entered on October 4, 2007,2 the court directed that the parties to argue the applicability of Omnia Commercial Co. v. United States, 261 U.S. 502, 43 S.Ct. 437, 67 L.Ed. 773 (1923); Air Pegasus of D.C., Inc. v. United States, 424 F.3d 1206 (Fed.Cir.2005); and Huntleigh USA Corp. v. United States, 75 Fed.Cl. 642 (2007). Briefing concluded on October 19, 2007. Argument was held October 22, 2007. Following argument, the court ordered supplemental briefing to allow the parties to address the applicability of new cases discussed by plaintiffs during [230]*230oral argument. Supplemental briefing was completed on November 9, 2007.

DISCUSSION

1. Standard of review

In considering a motion to dismiss filed pursuant to RCFC 12(b)(6), for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, the court’s task is not to determine whether a plaintiff will ultimately prevail, but ‘“whether the claimant is entitled to offer evidence to support the claims.’ ” Chapman Law Firm Co. v. Greenleaf Constr. Co., 490 F.3d 934, 938 (Fed.Cir.2007) (quoting Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 236, 94 S.Ct. 1683, 40 L.Ed.2d 90 (1974)). In Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, — U.S. —, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007), the United States Supreme Court clarified the standard enunciated in Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957), with respect to what a plaintiff must plead to survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion.3 The Supreme Court circumscribed the standard, stating: “ ‘[A]ny statement revealing the theory of the claim will suffice unless its factual impossibility may be shown from the face of the pleadings.’” McZeal v. Sprint Nextel Corp., 501 F.3d 1354, 1356 n. 4 (Fed.Cir.2007) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp., 127 S.Ct. at 1968).

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80 Fed. Cl. 228, 2008 U.S. Claims LEXIS 19, 2008 WL 215826, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/palmyra-pacific-seafoods-llc-v-united-states-uscfc-2008.