Pruess v. Udall

OPINION

SOLOMON, Chief Judge:

Plaintiffs seek to set aside a decision of the Secretary of the Interior denying patents for six mining claims.

This controversy began February 12, 1958, when the defendant filed invalidation proceedings against seven mining claims. At the hearing, the defendant admitted that there had been a valuable mineral discovery on the Black Jack claim and dismissed the challenge to this claim. The hearing examiner found that the land in the other six claims was mineral in character, but he concluded that a valuable mineral deposit had not been discovered. The examiner held…