Ninth Circuit judges question authority of Interior over Arctic refuge lease cancellations

A three-judge Ninth Circuit panel examined the relevance of a challenge brought by the Gwich’in Steering Committee and other Alaska Native and environmental groups to the Interior Department’s authority over oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Judge Michelle Friedland questioned whether the district court’s ruling mattered now that President Donald Trump quickly reversed the Biden administration’s cancellation of the leases.

Attorney Brook Brisson argued that preserving the Secretary’s power to cancel invalid leases remains important for similar arrangements elsewhere. DOJ attorney Thekla Hansen-Young, representing Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, said the department had effectively rescinded the 2023 cancellation with a 2025 decision affirming the leases and asked the court to dismiss the case. Judges Ana de Alba and Robert S. Lasnik, sitting by appointment, concurred that the issues may no longer be presented. The legal fight follows a history of alternating policies, from the 2017 congressional mandate for competitive leasing to the Biden administration’s suspension and eventual cancellation, and precedes an upcoming October trial in Alaska federal court over one outlet leasing process.