Court dismisses lawsuit on spying program

The two judges in the majority, Julia Smith Gibbons and Batchelder, are Republican appointees, named by Bush and his father, respectively.

Judge Ronald Lee Gilman, appointed by President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, dissented. Gilman said he would uphold the ruling last year on the grounds that the program violated the 1978 law.

The surveillance program caused a political uproar among Democrats and some Republicans, as well as civil rights activists. The Bush administration abandoned the program in January, putting it under court review.

(Additional reporting by James Vicini and Matt Spetalnick in in Washington)

(Editing by David Wiessler; Reuters Messaging: andrea.hopkins.reuters.com@reuters.net; +1 513 699 0045; andrea.hopkins@reuters.com))