Author Archives: Luke Wake

About Luke Wake

Luke A. Wake is a staff attorney at the NFIB Small Business Legal Center. Wake has particular expertise on environmental and land use issues, and has worked on numerous other constitutional issues and matters of importance to small business owners. He is an ardent defender of private property rights, which he believes are essential to the free enterprise system and the foundation of American liberty. As a strong advocate of individual rights and economic liberties, he has built his career defending small business interests. Since joining the NFIB Legal Center, Wake has focused on a whole host of issues, from employment law matters to regulatory compliance. In addition to serving as a resource for small business owners, Wake remains committed to the Legal Center’s pledge to ensure that the voice of small business is heard in the nation’s courts. As an appellate practitioner, Wake has focused particularly on informing the courts on matters of administrative law and on issues under the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause. He is also working to advance small business interests in law review articles, and was recently published in the Berkeley Journal of Law & Ecology. See R.S. Radford & Luke A. Wake, Deciphering and Extrapolating: Searching for Sense in Penn Central, 38 Ecology L.Q. 731, 746-747 (2011). Before joining the Legal Center’s team, Wake completed a prestigious two-year fellowship as an attorney in the Pacific Legal Foundation’s (PLF) College of Public Interest Law. Wake is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University School of Law in Cleveland Ohio, and is a member of the California Bar. He completed his undergraduate studies at Elon University in North Carolina in 2006 where he focused on political theory and corporate communications.

Supreme Court Holds No Permit Required for Storm-Water Run-Off

What ever happened to common sense? It seems we find ourselves asking this question these days with all of the madness in Washington. But the good news is that there is at least some sense left in the Supreme Court, … Continue reading

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Can Government Hold Your Permit Application Hostage?

Florence Dolan ran a plumbing and electric supply store in Tigard, Oregon—a suburb of Portland. Like many other small business owners, she had plans to expand her store. But, she hit a brick wall when seeking the necessary approvals. This … Continue reading

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Cutting Through Regulatory Nonsense – Legal Center Fights Senseless City Ordinance in in California Court

Red-tape is simply maddening. If you run a business, you know what this means. It seems like government bureaucrats insist on regulating anything and everything—if it moves, they regulate it. But, the NFIB Legal Center and NFIB work hard to … Continue reading

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Flooding with impunity: Can government destroy private property without paying compensation?

Today the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Arkansas Game & Fish Commission v. United States. The NFIB Legal Center filed in the case because it raises an important issue impacting small business property rights. The question is whether … Continue reading

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NFIB v. NLRB – Round 2 Moves to the Court of Appeals: Appellate Court Receptive to NFIB’s Lawsuit against the Poster Rule

Round 2 of NFIB’s lawsuit against the NLRB’s “poster rule” got underway yesterday with arguments in the federal Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. The rule, announced in August 2011, would require business owners to prominently post a notice in … Continue reading

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Fending-Off Regulatory Overreach in the Supreme Court: In Defense of Economic Liberty

As small business owners know all too well, federal agencies are stepping up their enforcement activities all across the country. Over the past few years we have seen agencies taking increasingly aggressive positions to extend their regulatory reach, and all … Continue reading

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An Uber small business success under assault by D.C. regulators!

Success does not usually go unnoticed. If you provide a superior product, or service you want people to take note. Indeed, the free market is driven by the competitive entrepreneurial spirit of hardworking innovative individuals and small business owners are … Continue reading

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