In May of 2024, Rise Grass Valley, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rise Gold Corp, filed a two part lawsuit against Nevada County in an attempt to overturn the two decisions by the Nevada County Board of Supervisors: to deny Rise’s claim of a “Vested Right” to operate the Idaho-Maryland Mine, and to deny Rise’s application for a Use Permit. On May 7, 2026, Nevada County Superior Court Judge S. Robert Tice-Raskin ruled against Rise in the Vested Rights portion of the suit.
Normally, at this point, the Superior Court would have proceeded toward resolving the second part of the lawsuit: the denial of the Use Permit. However, at the Case Management Conference (CMC) on June 8, Judge Tice-Raskin announced that Rise had requested a dismissal of the remaining case. A tentative follow up CMC was set for June 22 in order to assure correct closure of the case.
Why did Rise abandon their pursuit of the Use Permit?
Rise had previously announced its intention to appeal the court’s Vested Rights decision. However, as explained by Nevada County Counsel Trevor Koski, the higher appeals court would require a case to be fully adjudicated in the lower County court before considering the case. That means that Rise would have had to wait until the County had passed judgment on the Use Permit portion of Rise’s two part law suit, which could be years away. “It is because they want to pursue the Vested Rights case,” Koski stated when asked why Rise withdrew from the case. By dropping the Use Permit portion of the case, Rise can more immediately pursue their Vested Rights appeal at a higher level.
For the County, this is a big win because they will not have to spend more time and expense in fighting Rise over the Use Permit. And having already been denied a vested right by the court, Rise can now take it to the Appeals Court.
Local environmental group CEA Foundation also views Rise’s abandonment of their Use Permit claim as a positive outcome. According to Ralph Silberstein, CEA President, “We don’t feel the Vested Rights case has much of a chance in the higher courts, so we think we are a big step closer to ending this debacle.” Silberstein says that CEA intends to stand ready with additional resources, if they are needed, to help assure that Rise’s Vested Rights appeal fails.
About CEA Foundation: Community Environmental Advocates Foundation (CEA Foundation) performs research, education, and advocacy to promote responsible land use and environmental protection policies in Nevada County. CEA Foundation is the leader of MineWatch, a campaign that brings together a coalition of nonprofit organizations, residents, and businesses opposed to the Idaho-Maryland Mine. See cea-nc.org.