4
Opinion of the Court
M. Gerstein, Assistant Attorney General, and Raphael J. Moses and James R. Montgomery, Special Assistant Attorneys General. Timothy M. Tymkovich, Solicitor General, argued the cause for defendant State of Colorado. With him on the brief were Gale A. Norton, Attorney General, Stephen K. Erkenbrack, Chief Deputy Attorney General, and Wendy C. Weiss, First Assistant Attorney General.
Jeffrey P. Minear argued the cause for the United States. With him on the briefs were Solicitor General Days, Assistant Attorney General Schiffer, Deputy Solicitor General Kneedler, Andrew F. Walch, and Patricia L. Weiss.*
Justice Souter delivered the opinion of the Court. Since 1945, a decree of this Court has rationed the North Platte River among users in Wyoming, Nebraska, and Colorado. By petition in 1986, Nebraska again brought the matter before us, and we appointed a Special Master to conduct the appropriate proceedings. In his Third Interim Report on Motions to Amend Pleadings (Sept. 9, 1994) (hereinafter Third Interim Report), the Master has made recommendations for rulings on requests for leave to amend filed by Nebraska and Wyoming. We now have before us the parties' exceptions to the Master's report, each of which we overrule.
I
The North Platte River is a nonnavigable stream rising in northern Colorado and flowing through Wyoming into Nebraska, where it joins with the South Platte to form the Platte River. In 1934, Nebraska invoked our original jurisdiction under the Constitution, Art. III, § 2, cl. 2, by suing Wyoming for an equitable apportionment of the North Platte. The United States had leave to intervene, Colorado was impleaded as a defendant, and the ensuing litigation cul-*Briefs of amici curiae were filed for the Basin Electric Power Cooperative by Edward Weinberg, Richmond F. Allan, Michael J. Hinman, and Claire Olson; and for the Platte River Trust by Abbe David Lowell.
Page: Index Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007