Dear HCN,
People whose livelihoods
depend on creating and extending controversy about the Crown Jewel
Mine have suggested that Battle Mountain did not litigate the
federal denial of its plan of operations because the company had
concerns about the merits of its case (HCN, 5/24/99). In fact, just
the opposite is true.
Battle Mountain was
confident that the merits of its position were so overwhelmingly
strong that Congress would take quick action to remedy the illegal
denial. Battle Mountain’s decision not to pursue costly and
time-consuming litigation was vindicated by the passage of
legislation overturning the denial less than 60 days after the date
of the denial. The action of Congress saved the taxpayers from
footing the substantial bill that would have resulted had Battle
Mountain litigated the matter.
The denial was
based upon an alleged millsite-to-mining claim ratio limitation.
Kenneth D. Hubbard, a well-respected mining law practitioner with
the international law firm of Dorsey & Whitney, recently wrote:
“This millsite limitation is not now and never has been the law of
the United States.” It is perhaps generous to even call the alleged
ratio limitation an “interpretation” of the law. Mr. Hubbard also
noted that: “While dressed up in legal-sounding language, the
Solicitor’s Opinion (announcing the millsite-to-mining claim ratio
limitation) is really just an attempt to support a particular
policy position. It is not a legitimate legal analysis.”
The alleged limitation is also totally
inconsistent with numerous agency guidance documents. For example,
the BLM Manual provides that “There is no limit to the number of
mill sites that can be held by a single claimant,” and the BLM
Handbook for Mineral Examiners provides that “Any number of mill
sites may be located, but each must be used in connection with the
mining or milling operations.”
I hope this
explains that Battle Mountain’s decision not to resort to
litigation was not based on any perceived weakness in the company’s
potential case, but rather on the overwhelming strength of the
company’s position and its confidence that the rule of law would be
upheld by Congress.
Greg V.
Etter
Houston,
Texas
The writer is vice
president and general counsel of Battle Mountain
Gold.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Mining company knew it was golden.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
