Supreme Court sides with Michigan attorney general in pipeline fight

The company had requested that the case be moved to federal court, but the high court ruled, as Nessel had argued, that Enbridge had waited too long to file the request.

Published: April 22, 2026 3:02pm

Updated: April 22, 2026 3:03pm

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled against a request to move a dispute over a fossil-fuel pipeline from state to federal court. 

The Enbridge Energy pipeline, known as Line 5, transports crude oil and natural gas liquid such as propane under the Great Lakes – between Sarnia, Ontario and Superior, Wisconsin. 

It's been operating since 1953. In 2019, Michigan Attorney Dana Nessel sued in state court, hoping to void an easement for the pipeline and ultimately shut it down. 

The high court ruled unanimously Wednesday for Nessel in her argument that Enbridge waited too long to ask to move a lawsuit about twin pipelines running beneath the Straits of Mackinac to federal court from state court,  according to the Detroit Free Press.

Enbridge's attorneys argued that it would not harm the state to litigate in federal court, and Congress never intended to restrict federal courts when deciding the proper venue for such issues to be considered. 

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