Mountain States Legal Foundation (MSLF) is an American

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

free market In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ot ...

public interest law firm based in

Lakewood, Colorado The City of Lakewood is the home rule municipality that is the most populous municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 155,984 at the 2020 U.S. Census making Lakewood the fifth most populous city in Col ...

. Its lawyers argue cases on property rights and federal land management in the American West, as well as gun rights and other constitutional law cases. Past attorneys for MSLF include James G. Watt and

Gale Norton Gale Ann Norton (born March 11, 1954) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 48th United States Secretary of the Interior under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2006. A member of the Republican Party, she previously serve ...

, who became U.S. secretaries of the interior in the

Reagan administration Ronald Reagan's tenure as the 40th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1981, and ended on January 20, 1989. Reagan, a Republican from California, took office following a landslide victory over ...

and

George W. Bush administration George W. Bush's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush, a Republican from Texas, took office following a narrow victory over Democratic ...

, respectively; William Perry Pendley, acting director of the Bureau of Land Management in the

Trump administration Donald Trump's tenure as the 45th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican from New York City, took office following his Electoral College victory ...

; and

John Kyl John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, former U.S. senator from

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

History and activities

MSLF was incorporated in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, in 1976 with funding from the National Legal Center for the Public Interest and

Joseph Coors Joseph Coors, Sr. (November 12, 1917 – March 15, 2003), was the grandson of brewer Adolph Coors and president of Coors Brewing Company. Birth and education Coors was born in 1917 to Alice May Kistler (1885–1970) and Adolph Coors II. His sibl ...

. MSLF's first president was James G. Watt. MSLF filed ''amicus'' briefs opposing an affirmative action program at the

University of Colorado Law School The University of Colorado Law School is one of the professional graduate schools within the University of Colorado System. It is a public law school, with more than 500 students attending and working toward a Juris Doctor or Master of Studies in ...

, opposing business inspections, and opposing

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

's ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.Bellant, Russ. The Coors Connection: How Coors Family Philanthropy Undermines Democratic Pluralism, p 85. South End Press, 1991.
MSLF is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors, which also approves all legal actions taken by MSLF, and assisted in the selection of its litigation by a volunteer Board of Litigation. MSLF employs a full-time staff, which includes attorneys who conduct all of the litigation in which MSLF engages. The organization reports its annual budget to be over $2 million. MSLF's office is in

, near

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. MSLF publishes a quarterly newsletter, ''The Litigator'', which addresses topical legal issues. Since its creation, MSLF has argued cases before the Supreme Court of the United States and numerous federal courts of appeals. In 1995, its president, William Perry Pendley, argued before the Supreme Court in '' Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Peña,'' the case in which the justices ruled that preferential treatment based on race is almost always unconstitutional. MSLF has continued its litigation regarding affirmative action,

reverse discrimination Reverse discrimination is a term for discrimination against members of a dominant or majority group, in favor of members of a minority or historically disadvantaged group. Groups may be defined in terms of ethnicity, gender identity, nationality ...

, and racial quotas and preferences, and also has litigated regarding the

Voting Rights Act The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights movement ...

. In addition, MSLF has litigated regarding property rights. Its lawsuits have involved the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act, (especially regarding wetlands), the

National Environmental Policy Act The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a United States environmental law that promotes the enhancement of the environment and established the President's Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). The law was enacted on January 1, 1970.Un ...

(NEPA), the National Forest Management Act, the

Antiquities Act The Antiquities Act of 1906 (, , ), is an act that was passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by Theodore Roosevelt on June 8, 1906. This law gives the President of the United States the authority to, by presidential procla ...

, the Multiple Use Sustained Yield Act, and the General Mining Law and bars on and restrictions regarding the ability to develop natural resources such as energy and minerals and forest and agricultural products. In a case dismissed in 2002, MSLF sued

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

for failing to overturn a designation of national monuments action by

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

. MSLF's sources of funding have included

Texaco Texaco, Inc. ("The Texas Company") is an American oil brand owned and operated by Chevron Corporation. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owned the Havoline motor oil brand. Texaco was an independent company unt ...

, U.S. Steel Phillips Petroleum and ExxonMobil corporations and

Castle Rock Foundation The Castle Rock Foundation was an Conservatism in the United States, American conservative foundation started in 1993 with an endowment of $36.6M from the Adolph Coors Foundation. It ranked as Colorado's 15th largest foundation by assets at the end ...

Notable employees

Notable past employees include: *

Clint Bolick Clint Bolick (born December 26, 1957) is a justice of the Arizona Supreme Court. Previously, he served as Vice President of Litigation at the conservative/libertarian Goldwater Institute. He co-founded the libertarian Institute for Justice, whe ...

– Justice on the

Supreme Court of Arizona The Arizona Supreme Court is the state supreme court of the U.S. state of Arizona. Sitting in the Supreme Court building in downtown Phoenix, the court consists of a chief justice, a vice chief justice, and five associate justices. Each justice ...

. * Jon Kyl – former United States Senator from Arizona * Chip Mellor – Former President and General Counsel of the

Institute for Justice The Institute for Justice (IJ) is a libertarian non-profit public interest law firm in the United States. It has litigated ten cases before the United States Supreme Court dealing with eminent domain, interstate commerce, public financing for ...

– 48th United States Secretary of the Interior * James G. Watt – 43rd United States Secretary of the Interior * William Perry Pendley — former Acting Director of the Bureau of Land Management * Steven J. Lechner — Deputy Chief Administrative Judge, Interior Board of Land Appeals

References

External links

*
Profile by "Charity Navigator"

Organizational Profile
–

National Center for Charitable Statistics The National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS) is a clearing house for information about the nonprofit sector of the U.S. economy. The National Center for Charitable Statistics builds national, state, and regional databases and develops sta ...

(

Urban Institute The Urban Institute is a Washington, D.C.–based think tank that carries out economic and social policy research to "open minds, shape decisions, and offer solutions". The institute receives funding from government contracts, foundations and pr ...

) {{Authority control Non-profit organizations based in Colorado Organizations established in 1976