Sierra Club v. Martin

The Forest Service (defendant) proposed timber-cutting contracts across seven parcels in Georgia's Chattahoochee and Oconee National Forests, and environmental groups including the Sierra Club (plaintiffs) sued, arguing the contracts violated the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) by authorizing cutting during migratory bird nesting season, likely killing thousands of birds, and that the MBTA's prohibition on taking or killing migratory birds applied even to the federal government itself. The district court agreed and issued a preliminary injunction halting the timber-cutting and road-building activities; the Forest Service and timber contractors appealed.