The Supreme Court Grants Review of the Controversial CEQA Decision Berkeley Hillside Preservation v. City of Berkeley

May 23, 2012

The Supreme Court has voted unanimously to grant review of the First District Court of Appeal's controversial decision in Berkeley Hillside Preservation v. City of Berkeley (2012) 203 Cal.App.4th 656. The case involved the application of an exception to the use of categorical exemptions under CEQA for projects that could result in significant environmental impacts due to "unusual circumstances."  The First District held that because a "fair argument" could be made that a residential project in the Berkeley hills could create significant environmental impacts based on evidence submitted by the project's opponents, the City of Berkeley could not rely upon a categorical exemption under CEQA regardless of whether those impacts were in fact due to "unusual circumstances."  This holding cast substantial doubt on the ability of agencies to continue to rely upon categorical exemptions any time a project opponent submits evidence of potentially significant impacts.  The First District also ignored well-settled precedent which requires both a finding that there is a reasonable possibility of significant environmental impacts and that the impacts would be due to unusual circumstances associated with the project. Now that the Supreme Court has granted review, the decision has been superseded which should come as welcome news for both public agencies and private developers alike.

Amrit Kulkarni and Julia Bond of Meyers Nave represent the Real Party in Interest in this case and were responsible for drafting the successful petition for review.

Contact
Julia Bond
Principal
E-mail
510.808.2000

Julia Bond is an experienced trial and appellate court litigator specializing in land use and environmental litigation. Ms. Bond represents primarily public entity clients in litigation involving a wide range of land use and environmental laws, including the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the State Planning and Zoning Law, the Coastal Act, the Subdivision Map Act, the Mitigation Fee Act, the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Act and civil right claims in the land use context.
 
Amrit S. Kulkarni
Principal
E-mail
510.808.2000

Amrit Kulkarni heads the firm’s Land Use Practice Group and also co-chairs the Transportation and Infrastructure Practice Group. His practice focuses on all aspects of land use and environmental law. He has represented public entities and private clients in numerous matters and cases involving the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the State Planning and Zoning Law, the Coastal Act, the Tidelands Trust, the Subdivision Map Act, the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Act, the Mitigation Fee Act, the Clean Water Act and civil rights claims in the land use context.