The US Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Tuesday that Michigan’s lawsuit to shut down the Line 5 pipeline will remain in state court. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the opinion for all nine justices.
Why it matters
The ruling keeps a case that could force the closure of a 72-year-old pipeline in the hands of state judges, where Michigan has a stronger legal position. Line 5 carries 540,000 barrels of crude oil and natural gas liquids daily between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario.
The procedural question
Enbridge had 30 days after Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed her 2019 lawsuit to move the case to federal court. Instead, the company waited 887 days. It only sought removal after a separate state case challenging Line 5 was dismissed.
Sotomayor wrote that allowing such delays “would undermine Congress’s manifest interest in resolving threshold removal questions early and conclusively” and would risk “significant waste of resources.”
What the case is about
Nessel sued to revoke the 1953 easement that allows Enbridge to operate a 4.5-mile section of dual pipelines running along the lake bed beneath the Straits of Mackinac. The straits connect Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.
Michigan argues the ageing infrastructure poses an unacceptable environmental risk to the Great Lakes, which hold 20% of the world’s fresh surface water. Enbridge has proposed a $500 million tunnel to encase the pipeline but has not received state approval.
What comes next
The case now returns to Michigan state court, where the merits of revoking the easement will be argued. Environmental groups hailed the decision. Enbridge said it remained committed to building the tunnel and would continue to operate Line 5 safely.