This case is the last remaining challenge to BLM’s 2018 decision to conduct a spay study on wild horses from the Warm Springs Herd Management Area in the Burns District of Oregon. Plaintiffs filed a motion for preliminary injunction, which the court granted on November 13, 2018. In March 2020, the court lifted the stay and dismissed the case with prejudice.
Court ruled against agency on First Amendment claim and an Administrative Procedure Act claim. On December 4, 2020, the court issued an order awarding plaintiffs' fees and costs of $183,572.40. BLM, through DOJ, negotiated a settlement amount of $165,215.00.