Rover has initiated one mass filing against all property owners in the United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan.

Rover Pipeline has been acquiring property rights in Washtenaw and Lenawee Counties. Rover just filed a single mass lawsuit that identifies scores of properties and owners. The case was filed in the United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan and assigned to Judge Mark Goldsmith.

Judge Goldsmith is an experienced judge. Judge Goldsmith first served as a judge in the Oakland County Circuit Court, a Michigan state court. As such, he is likely familiar with state court condemnation procedures.

Expect one of the early battles to focus upon the procedures that must be implemented. Rover likely filed in federal court in hope of avoiding the significant benefits to which property owners are entitled in Michigan state court cases through the Uniform Condemnation Procedures Act (“UCPA”). However, my preliminary research suggests that Rover must still comply with the UCPA.  The benefits of the UCPA are detailed in this blog post.