This week, the Ninth Circuit tackles two issues of regulatory
interpretation, addressing the Federal Aviation
Administration's rules governing challenges to "no
hazard" determinations and the Food and Drug
Administration's rules governing protein-content claims.
BACKCOUNTRY AGAINST DUMPS v. FEDERAL
AVIATION ADMINISTRATION
The Court holds that the Federal Aviation Administration's
failure to notify an interested party of a comment period for a
study violated the agency's regulations as interpreted by the
agency.
The panel: Judges Gould, Rawlinson, and Bress,
with Judge Gould writing the opinion and Judge Bress
concurring.
Key highlight: "A federal agency, like the
FAA, is obliged to abide by the regulations it promulgates,
including its own internal operating procedures. This is especially
true where a prescribed procedure is intended to protect the
interests of a party before the agency. Stated another way, it is
absolutely essential that responsible
