In the heart of Arizona’s Copper Corridor, a legal battle rages over more than just land—it’s a clash between economic opportunity and claims about purportedly sacred land where enormous copper reserves lie. The case is called Apache Stronghold v. United States, and MSLF has stepped in to advocate for local Arizona communities by supporting the U.S. government’s plan to transfer land to the Resolution Copper company. This transfer could bring big changes to Arizona’s Copper Corridor, where towns like Superior, Hayden, and Kearny are located. These towns have a long history with mining—and the promise of future copper extraction could mean new jobs and economic and technological growth, including meeting the growing demand for copper used in electric cars.
But there’s a snag: Apache Stronghold, a non-profit representing Native American religious interests, is fighting the transfer. They argue that the transfer infringes upon their religious freedom, as the land in question holds cultural significance for them.
For background, in 2014, Congress passed a bipartisan law called the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act. Led by Senator John McCain, the law included Congress’s instruction to the United States Forest Service to transfer ownership of about 2,422 acres of National Forest to a company called Resolution Copper. This land included an area called Oak Flat, which is central to the case being discussed. In return for this land, Resolution Copper would provide the Forest Service with approximately 5,459 acres of land (so, almost twice the amount of land it was receiving) to be used for conservation purposes, meaning that it would be added to the National Forest System.
Despite a public process and conversations with tribes over many years, Apache Stronghold went to the court. It argued that the transfer violated their religious freedom rights, since Resolution Copper would engage in copper operations on Oak Float. So even though Apache Stronghold had no possessory interest over the relevant land—it belonged to the federal government—they sued and sought a preliminary injunction that would prevent the transfer. The district court denied the motion, and a panel of three judges for the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s decision by a vote of 2-1. Unsatisfied, the plaintiffs asked an en banc panel of Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear the case (meaning 11 judges, instead of 3). The Court agreed, and on March 1, ruled 6-5 to affirm the denial of the preliminary injunction. That means that for now, the Forest Service may proceed with the transfer.
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Our clients—the towns of Superior and Hayden, and the former mayor of Kearny—recognize what the economic consequences of stopping copper production were for their towns and their citizens. We were proud to represent them in this fight. And we know that if the courts had blocked the land transfer here, it could have set a precedent that affects resource extraction across the country, and devastates local communities dependent on responsible use of our country’s natural resources. MSLF stepped up to make sure that the transfer goes ahead, not just for the benefit of these Arizona towns, but also to support national goals like energy security and strength.
What’s at Stake?
This case demonstrates a novel clash between economic development and religious freedom. And it raises the threat that – at the extreme – any person with a subjective spiritual claim to any piece of land in America could halt all development of that land, even by a private owner who is merely engaged in acquiring the land from the federal government. This result advances MSLF’s mission to protect individual freedom, private property rights, and economic liberty.
This long-running case continues to offer a pivotal opportunity to affirm that statutory transfers enacted by Congress can proceed—even when opponents press cultural claims or try to use NEPA as a way to undermine the public interest. Especially considering the Supreme Court’s recent ruling re-affirming that NEPA is strictly a procedural statute, and it does not let so-called “environmental” concerns cut down Congress’s clear expression of what’s in the Nation’s interest. In this case, Congress said clearly that the land exchange to support the Resolution Copper project is good for the Nation, and it directed the Forest Service to make that exchange happen. The anti-mine groups cannot use NEPA to undermine such a strong statement of the Nation’s interest.
Case Update
Mountain States is pleased that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, sitting as an 11-judge en banc panel, rejected a challenge to Resolution Copper’s ability to obtain land for copper production in Arizona. The latest effort to stop it involved Native Americans who asserted that the project would violate their religious freedom rights, even though the area was not theirs to control. As the six-judge majority of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals stated, such a rule would mean that even assertions that an entire U.S. state was holy or sacred could stop development projects throughout the region. MSLF was proud to file an amicus brief on behalf of the Arizona towns of Superior and Hayden, and on behalf of the former mayor of Kearny, Arizona, in support of the copper project. These towns would suffer severe economic pain if the copper project did not proceed as authorized. MSLF will continue to follow this fight if it proceeds to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In September 2024, counsel for Apache Stronghold filed a petition for writ of certiorari in the Supreme Court of the United States. The Supreme Court denied cert in May 2025.
October 2025 Update
The case went forward at the federal district court, with the anti-mine groups objecting to the updated NEPA analysis that the Forest Service completed in the summer of 2025. After the district court refused to grant NEPA-based injunctions to prevent the land exchange at the core of the case, those groups appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Mountain States, on behalf of the Towns of Superior and Hayden and the former Mayor of Kearny, has filed the amicus brief in support of the district court’s new decisions to deny those injunctions. With that brief now on the record, we will continue to monitor developments, including any further petition for certiorari. If the matter advances, we are prepared to continue advocating that the Supreme Court and the lower federal courts must respect Congress’s carefully negotiated balance between economic development, resource stewardship, and constitutional limits, and that the land exchange and Resolution Copper project should go forward without further delay.
March 2026 Update
In 2026, the U.S. Forest Service completed the federal land exchange at the center of this case, transferring Oak Flat to Resolution Copper following years of litigation and a favorable ruling for the federal government in the Ninth Circuit. The decision cleared the way for Resolution Copper to move forward with the next phase of development, including additional drilling, infrastructure upgrades, and underground development activities. While Apache Stronghold’s efforts to stop the transfer were unsuccessful, the case continues to stand as one of the most significant religious liberty battles involving Native American sacred land in recent history.
See press release for more information.
July 2026 Update
Mountain States Legal Foundation filed a second amicus brief on behalf of several Arizona communities whose futures are closely tied to the Oak Flat land exchange. While much of the litigation has focused on the legal dispute between the parties, the brief highlights the perspective that has largely been missing: the families, workers, and towns that spent nearly a decade negotiating community benefits to ensure the project would strengthen—not burden—the region.
The brief argues that reversing the completed land exchange would jeopardize thousands of jobs, millions of dollars in community investments, infrastructure improvements, education funding, and economic opportunities that local communities negotiated in good faith. MSLF also explains that the Ninth Circuit correctly applied existing law and that there is no basis for the extraordinary step of rehearing the case or unwinding a land exchange that Congress specifically authorized.
September 2026 Update
The Ninth Circuit denied the petitions for rehearing and rehearing en banc in the Oak Flat case. The panel’s decision in favor of the Forest Service and Resolution Copper stays in place.
