Friends of Hope Valley v. United States Forest Service

MEMORANDUM **

We do not have jurisdiction over Appellant Friends of Hope Valley’s (“Friends”) appeal of the district court’s order vacating and remanding the Forest Service’s winter recreation management decision for the Forestdale Creek Area of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. See Alsea Valley Alliance v. Dep’t of Commerce, 358 F.3d 1181, 1184 (9th Cir.2004) (“Subject to a few exceptions!,] ... appellate jurisdiction only extends over ‘final decisions of the district courts,’ 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and remand orders generally are not ‘final decisions’ for purposes of section 1291."). As the government conceded during oral argument, “a holding of nonappealability would [not] ... deprive the litigants of an opportunity to obtain review.” Id. at 1184-85 (internal quotation marks omitted).

If aggrieved by the outcome, Friends may obtain appellate review of the Forest Service’s decision after remand, including review of all issues pertaining to jurisdiction under 43 U.S.C. § 932 (“R.S. § 2477 rights of way”) over the Forestdale Creek Road. See id. at 1185. If Friends believes the resulting rule on remand is (“unlawful and adverse to its interests, it can bring suit at that point to…