⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

Farmers and landowners along the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers say Army Corps navigation projects caused longer, more frequent floods during the growing season, sometimes into July. Their Kentucky and Illinois properties had long flooded in winter and spring, but the water usually receded in time for planting. They blame river-training structures, dredging, and the Olmsted Locks and Dam, which began operating in 2018, for changing that pattern, and seek compensation for an alleged taking. Because they sued on July 30, 2021, the Court of Federal Claims' six-year limit makes July 30, 2015 the cutoff. For gradual flooding, the stabilization doctrine delays accrual until it becomes clear that recurring floods have caused a permanent taking and the extent of damage is reasonably foreseeable. In 2023, the claims court refused to dismiss because the government had not directly challenged their allegation that a new flood pattern stabilized after the cutoff. After the government returned with historical river-gauge data, the court dismissed in 2024 for lack of jurisdiction, finding that the landowners had not proved a new pattern. The Federal Circuit must decide whether the claims court used the right legal test and whether the record supports that finding.

Angelly v. United States (No. 25-1333) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, argued September 9, 2026.