Lee
Welborn’s defendant,
who rerouted a small stream without a permit to do so, obtained an order on
January 4, 2012 granting summary judgment in a Clean Water Act case. The
co-defendant sold the adjoining downstream parcel of land to the plaintiffs,
who used the building next to the stream as a warehouse. In September
2009, the building flooded when the stream came out of its banks, and the
plaintiffs sued in federal court. In an unusual procedural move, the
plaintiffs moved for summary judgment on the Clean Water Act violation. In
response, Lee obtained an expert hydrologist who concluded that the 500 year
flood would have flooded the plaintiffs’ building whether the stream was in its
original channel or in its new location. The co-defendant filed its
motion for summary judgment in response. Prior to the expiration of time
for the defendants to file their dispositive motions, Judge Harold Murphy
considered the expert hydrologist’s undisputed affidavit and entered an Order
granting summary judgment to all defendants. Plaintiffs have appealed the
court’s ruling to the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.
