The Moroun family, owners of the Ambassador Bridge, have lost another challenge against construction of a rival bridge — the Gordie Howe International Bridge.

On Dec. 21, the Michigan Supreme Court denied the Moroun family's application to appeal a May 8 judgment of the Court of Appeals.

The May judgment dismissed Morouns' lawsuit looking to stop the Michigan Department of Transportation's efforts to buy land owned by the Morouns and other companies. The land is in the pathway of the new bridge on the Michigan side, and the suit could have led to another delay in the new crossing to Canada.

The Supreme Court's decision to not allow the Moroun's to appeal means only one lawsuit remains to challenge the Gordie Howe bridge construction.

"Michigan and its partners assumed that none of the litigation intended to stop the project would prevail. That’s why the procurement process has been completed and ground has been broken on the project," said Andy Doctoroff, a lawyer and consultant for Michigan on the Gordie Howe International Bridge project. "However, the decision by the Michigan Supreme Court eliminates yet another project risk consistent with all stake holder expectations."

More:Judge tosses latest Moroun attempts to block Gordie Howe bridge

More:Gordie Howe Bridge groundbreaking message: No stopping this bridge now

For the past five years, Doctoroff has been the bridge project's point person under Gov. Rick Snyder. The underlying project agreement for the bridge is valued at more than $4 billion in U.S. dollars, he said.

Crown Enterprises, DIBDetroit, Riverview-Trenton Railroad, Central Transport, CE Detroit and the Detroit International Bridge Co. filed the now-defunct lawsuit on Dec. 29, 2016, in Michigan Court of Claims against Snyder, MDOT and the Michigan Strategic Fund. It argued that the state was improperly seeking to use eminent domain to take property from the companies because the state constitution gives the Legislature — not the governor — the authority to build international bridges.

The president of the Ambassador Bridge company did not return a call for comment.

The Moroun family has had a financial interest in fighting the bridge and delaying its construction. A new bridge, according to one estimate by the family, could divert as much as 75 percent of the Ambassador Bridge's truck traffic.

The Ambassador Bridge, which is the only above-ground crossing between Windsor and Detroit and is one of the world's busiest international trade crossings, is in effect a monopoly for the Morouns until a rival bridge is built. The tunnel under the Detroit River is not suitable for truck traffic.

Supporters of the Gordie Howe bridge say a new supply route is needed and building the bridge would create jobs, and could help transform Detroit into a logistics capital of the Midwest. The Canadian government is financing the construction.

The Moroun family has fought it all the way, filing five lawsuits. All but one have now been dismissed, including a federal suit. In May, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals denied a request to revisit a case in which the Moroun family tried to block the agreement between Michigan and Canada.

More:U.S. appeals court denies Morouns' bid to revisit Detroit River bridge agreement

One lawsuit remains pending, regarding condemnation of some properties. It awaits a decision by the Michigan Court of Appeals on the Moroun family's right to appeal it.

“It is unclear as to when there will be a ruling" in that case, said Doctoroff. "The state will do as it has always done, namely aggressively litigate the claim and do everything within its power to make sure It’s timely heard and resolved.”

Doctoroff said the bridge project expects the Morouns' claims to be dismissed.

The new bridge, on which ground was broken last summer, is scheduled for completion and will open to traffic by the end of 2024, but the time and cost to litigate the various lawsuits has taken a toll, Doctoroff said.

"We’re thankful that the project is being fully financed by the government of Canada so that we always had the resources we needed to both litigate and drive the project forward at the same time," said Doctoroff.

Contact: Jamie L. LaReau at 313-222-2149 or jlareau@freepress.com