Filed Date: Nov. 12, 2025
Case Ongoing
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On November 12, 2025, Plaintiff, Defender of Wildlife – a nonprofit 501(c)(3) membership organization dedicated to the protection and restoration of all native U.S. species in their natural communities and the preservation of the habitats on which these species depend – filed this suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska against the Department of the Interior, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the King Cove Corporation to invalidate a 2025 land exchange involving the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. The complaint challenged Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s decision to reallocate 484 acres of federal refuge and wilderness land to the King Cove Corporation, enabling the corporation to build a road connecting King Cove and Cold Bay, Alaska. Plaintiff claimed the planned road will “result in incalculable and irreversible damage to the myriad wildlife species, the world-class wetlands and lagoon complex on the Izembek isthmus, and the pristine wilderness values for which Izembek is known nation- and worldwide.”
The Plaintiff alleged that Defendants' action violated The Wilderness Act, The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act, ANILCA (Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act), and The Administrative Procedure Act. The Plaintiff sought a vacatur of the 2025 land exchange, an order that the land be restored to the federal government and to the Izembek Refuge, declarations that the Defendants’ actions violated the applicable laws, and an injunction barring the federal Defendants from taking any further steps to enable construction of the road.
This case is ongoing.
Summary Authors
Maddy Ligon (11/19/2025)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71905243/parties/defenders-of-wildlife-v-burgum/
Gleason, Sharon Louise (Alaska)
Davenport, Jane (Alaska)
Franz, Daniel (Alaska)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71905243/defenders-of-wildlife-v-burgum/
Last updated Dec. 3, 2025, 12:19 a.m.
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: Nov. 12, 2025
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
A nonprofit 501(c)(3) membership organization dedicated to the protection and restoration of all native U.S. species in their natural communities and the preservation of the habitats on which these species depend.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Non-profit NON-religious organization
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
King Cove Corporation (Aleutians East), Private Entity/Person
Defendant Type(s):
Facility Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. §§ 551 et seq.
Other Dockets:
District of Alaska 3:25-cv-00319
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: None Yet / None
Relief Sought:
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
Environmental Justice and Resources: