Special master named in river dispute

The Supreme Court on Wednesday named Ralph I. Lancaster, Jr., of Portland, Maine, as the special master to review and proposea ruling to the Court in an original case, Florida v. Georgia. The appointment order is here. He has served as a special master in prior cases at the Court.

The Court on November 4 gave Florida permission to sue Georgia, directly in the Supreme Court, in a long-running dispute between the two states over their rights to water flowing from rivers in Georgia into Florida’s Apalachicola River. It usually takes several years for such cases to develop, under the control of a special master. The special masterdoes not have the authority to rule, but only to recommend outcomes to the Justices.