High court tosses agency decision, cites lawyer’s role

Trial Notebook

By Steven P. Garmisa

Hoey & Farina

Posted January 22, 2024 11:48 AM

With a “realistic appraisal of psychological tendencies and human weakness,” the Nebraska Supreme Court reversed a decision by an administrative agency because the risk of unfairness from the triple role of the agency’s attorney — as investigator, prosecutor and advisor — was “intolerably high.”The case involved the Middle Republican Natural Resources District — an agency that oversees the midsection of the Republican River basin — and two landowners that allegedly violated groundwater management rules.After administrative …

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