The Oregon Supreme Court visited the Knight Law Center on Tuesday to hear two legal cases, one dealing with environmental pollution and another dealing with statutes of limitations for making claims against local governments.
The Oregon Supreme Court’s visit was hosted by the law school’s Legal Research and Writing Program, which hosts the court every year. All first-year law students are required to attend the event, said Donna Williamson, program assistant for Legal Research and Writing.
Students and residents were allowed to watch as the justices heard oral arguments from the lawyers involved with each case.
The first case, ETU, Inc. v. Environmental Quality Commission, dealt with a dispute between the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and a Warrenton, Ore. gas station owner who was penalized by the DEQ for not cleaning up contaminated soil and water around the station’s underground tanks. The owner’s lawyer filed a request for a late hearing over the penalty and the DEQ denied it, according to case documents.
The justices were asked to consider whether the DEQ was correct in denying the request and to study the time frame for seeking a judicial review of a state agency’s decision.
In the second case, Baker v. City of Lakeside, the court reviewed the specifics of the two-year statute of limitations in regards to a complaint filed against the city of Lakeside, Ore. The Oregon Supreme Court often visits law schools, community colleges and high schools across the state to hear cases in front of audiences.