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Environmental
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April 23, 2025
CEOs Urge SEC To Ban Political Activists' Proxy Proposals
The Business Roundtable on Wednesday urged the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Congress to quickly reform the shareholder proposal process for public companies, including by banning activists' proposals relating to environmental, social and political issues, saying proxy statements have become "battlegrounds for political debates."
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April 23, 2025
Oil Giants Lose Bid To Shake DC 'Greenwashing' Suit
A D.C. Superior Court judge has refused to throw out a D.C. lawsuit accusing BP, Chevron, Exxon Mobil and Shell of long misleading consumers about climate change and the central role that their fossil fuel products have played in causing it.
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April 23, 2025
Denver Water Says Dam Work Won't Hurt Environment
The utility Denver Water urged the Tenth Circuit to lift part of a Colorado district court's ruling that stopped construction of a new dam, arguing that allowing construction to go forward won't impact environmental issues that environmental groups are actually concerned about.
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April 23, 2025
10th Circ. Says Lower Court Erred On Pollution Coverage
A Tenth Circuit panel determined Wednesday that absolute pollution exclusions in insurance policies unambiguously prevented a New Mexico property owner from obtaining coverage for underlying contamination litigation, reversing a decision by a district court and saying that court erred "in all key respects."
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April 23, 2025
Texas Court Skeptical Of 'Death Star' Standing Argument
A Texas appellate judge asked the state Wednesday if it expected three of its largest cities to " wait for a thousand tiny cuts" before being allowed to challenge a bill nicknamed the "Death Star" by opponents, which they say infringe on their ability to manage their own affairs.
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April 23, 2025
Justices Hint That Fuel Groups Can Fight Emissions Waiver
U.S. Supreme Court justices on Wednesday appeared to back a contention from fuel industry groups that they have standing to challenge the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Act waiver allowing California to set its own greenhouse gas emissions standards for vehicles.
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April 23, 2025
Judge Says Calif. Tribes Can't Intervene In $700M Casino Row
A District of Columbia federal judge refused on Wednesday to allow three California tribes and a company to intervene in another California tribe's suit accusing the federal government of wrongfully rescinding gambling eligibility for the tribe's $700 million casino project.
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April 23, 2025
Plastic Co. Asks 1st Circ. To Undo Class Cert In PFOA Suit
Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Co. told the First Circuit that a New Hampshire federal judge's overly broad class certification for plaintiffs claiming it contaminated thousands of properties with a toxic forever chemical must be reversed, arguing that it opened courthouse doors to uninjured class members.
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April 23, 2025
New Mexico Wildfire Sparks Suit Against Federal Government
The federal government is being hit with a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Forest Service's alleged failure to follow its own prescribed burn plan, saying the lapse eventually led to the destruction of nearly 46,000 acres in the Jemez Mountains in New Mexico.
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April 23, 2025
9th Circ. Asked To Modify Ruling In LA Port Co. Coverage Row
A Los Angeles port operator's insurer asked a three-judge panel in the Ninth Circuit to rethink part of its decision ordering a jury trial on the amount of defense costs the operator incurred while litigating pollution claims brought by the city, arguing they improperly relied on a depublished decision.
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April 23, 2025
6th Circ. Preserves Enbridge's Pipeline Suit Against Mich.
The Sixth Circuit on Wednesday said Enbridge Energy LP can pursue its lawsuit challenging Michigan's decision to revoke an easement for a natural gas and oil pipeline, rejecting the state's argument that it was protected by sovereign immunity.
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April 23, 2025
Railcar Co. Owes Nothing In $600M Ohio Derailment Deal
A federal jury on Wednesday freed a railcar company from Norfolk Southern Corp.'s suit seeking a contribution to a $600 million settlement with individuals and businesses impacted by a train derailment and chemical spill in a small Ohio village two years ago. Â
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April 23, 2025
Insurer Says No Coverage For $7.8M Tornado Damage Suit
The insurer for a construction inspection company claimed it owed no coverage for a suit alleging the company overlooked deficiencies that contributed to a $7.8 million tornado loss, telling a New Jersey federal court the policyholder had no coverage for professional services gone wrong.
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April 23, 2025
Judge Slams TCPA Atty Over Filing With 'No Legitimate Basis'
A North Carolina magistrate judge on Wednesday chastised a Telephone Consumer Protection Act litigant and his attorney for filing a reply to a discovery motion after the court had already ruled on it, striking the reply from the docket and warning that further filings without "a legitimate basis" could lead to sanctions.
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April 23, 2025
Sierra Metals, Alpayana Reach $176M Deal After 'Hostile' Bid
Toronto-based mining company Sierra Metals Inc. said Wednesday it has reached a preliminary agreement to sell the business to Alpayana Canada in a deal worth approximately $176 million, in a U-turn for the company after characterizing an earlier Alpayana offer as a "hostile" takeover bid.
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April 23, 2025
Akerman Adds Womble Bond Renewable Energy Pro In NC
Akerman LLP has added a former Womble Bond Dickinson LLP partner to the firm's Charlotte, North Carolina, office for its corporate practice group, the firm announced Tuesday.
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April 23, 2025
Apollo Plugs $220M Into Energy-Focused Joint Venture
Private equity giant Apollo, advised by Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, on Wednesday announced plans to commit up to $220 million into a new joint venture partnership with Brown Rudnick LLP-led Bullrock Energy Ventures.
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April 23, 2025
Judge Likely To Block Trump Collective-Bargaining Ban
A D.C. federal judge appeared ready on Wednesday to block President Donald Trump's executive order threatening to strip as many as 100,000 federal employees of their collective bargaining power, saying the order seems to target unions because they've challenged his actions, not because of any purported national security justification.
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April 23, 2025
M&A 'Pause' Requires Nimble, Creative Dealmaking
With deals stalling in a market defined by uncertainty, attorneys and the dealmakers they counsel are leaning on creative structures — from earnouts to partial stake sales — to keep transactions alive, according to corporate lawyers advising on major mergers and acquisitions.
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April 22, 2025
PacifiCorp Should Pay For 39 Years Of Fire Trauma, Jury Told
A group of nine displaced property owners started the latest trial Tuesday over 2020 wildfires during which PacifiCorp chose not to de-energize its power lines, telling an Oregon state jury that more than 39 years' worth of harm has been done when all the plaintiffs' sagas are considered together.
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April 22, 2025
Audit Finds Calif. Universities' Repatriation Efforts Still Slow
The University of California system, despite years of demands for compliance to a federal law designed to protect Indigenous burial sites, still lacks accountability and urgency to return to tribes the thousands of Indigenous remains and artifacts in its collections, according to a state audit on the process.
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April 22, 2025
Wind Farm Work Stoppage Raises Energy Project Risks
The Trump administration's recent move to freeze construction of a federally approved offshore wind farm has energy infrastructure developers concerned that their permits may not protect them from the government pulling the plug on their projects.
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April 22, 2025
US Intends To Proceed With Ariz. Copper Mine, Justices Told
The U.S. government says there has been no doubt that it intends to proceed with a land exchange in Arizona for a planned multibillion-dollar copper mine, telling the U.S. Supreme Court that its recent notice of publication of a final environmental impact statement for the project does not constitute urgent review.
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April 22, 2025
Ohio Derailment Not Caused By Texas Hurricane, Rail Co. Says
Railcar company GATX Corp. told a federal jury Tuesday that after three weeks of testimony, only a single witness had advanced Norfolk Southern's theory that a 2017 hurricane in Texas caused the hidden damage to a GATX-owned car that would eventually set off the 2023 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.
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April 22, 2025
Phillips Steps Down As FERC Commissioner
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Commissioner Willie Phillips stepped down from his role on Tuesday, paving the way for President Donald Trump to install a Republican majority at the five-member agency.
Expert Analysis
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Firms Still Have The Edge In Lateral Hiring, But Buyer Beware
Partner mobility data suggests that the third quarter of this year continued to be a buyer’s market, with the average candidate demanding less compensation for a larger book of business — but moving into the fourth quarter, firms should slow down their hiring process to minimize risks, say officers at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.
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Teaching Your Witness To Beat The Freeze/Appease Response
In addition to fight-or-flight, witnesses may experience the freeze/appease response at trial or deposition — where they become a deer in headlights, agreeing with opposing counsel’s questions and damaging their credibility in the process — but certain strategies can help, says Bill Kanasky at Courtroom Sciences.
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Think Like A Lawyer: 1 Type Of Case Complexity Stands Out
In contrast to some cases that appear complex due to voluminous evidence or esoteric subject matter, a different kind of complexity involves tangled legal and factual questions, each with a range of possible outcomes, which require a “sliding scale” approach instead of syllogistic reasoning, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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How Litigation, Supply Chains Buffeted Offshore Wind In 2024
U.S. offshore wind developers continue to face a range of challenges — including litigation brought by local communities and interest groups, ongoing supply chain issues, and a lack of interconnection and transmission infrastructure — in addition to uncertainty surrounding federal energy policy under the second Trump administration, say attorneys at Liskow & Lewis.
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What Bisphenol S Prop 65 Listing Will Mean For Industry
The imminent addition of bisphenol S — a chemical used in millions of products — to California's Proposition 65 list will have sweeping compliance and litigation implications for companies in the retail, food and beverage, paper, manufacturing and personal care product industries, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Note 3 Simple Types Of Legal Complexity
Cases can appear complex for several reasons — due to the number of issues, the volume of factual and evidentiary sources, and the sophistication of those sources — but the same basic technique can help lawyers tame their arguments into a simple and persuasive message, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Permitting, Offtake Among Offshore Wind Challenges In 2024
Although federal offshore wind development started to pick up this year, many challenges to the industry became apparent as well — including slow federal permitting, the pitfalls of restarting permits after changes in project status, and the difficulties of negotiating economically viable offtake agreements, say attorneys at Liskow & Lewis.
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Series
Gardening Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Beyond its practical and therapeutic benefits, gardening has bolstered important attributes that also apply to my litigation practice, including persistence, patience, grit and authenticity, says Christopher Viceconte at Gibbons.
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Litigation Inspiration: Reframing Document Review
For attorneys — new ones especially — there is much fulfillment to find in document review by reflecting on how important, interesting and pleasant it can be, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
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The Fashion Industry Should Prep Now For State PFAS Bans
New York and California have each passed legislation regulating PFAS in apparel and other textiles, so retailers should consult with manufacturers and suppliers and obtain the requisite certification documents as soon as possible to avoid disruptions in supply chains, say attorneys at Venable.
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California Supreme Court's Year In Review
Attorneys at Horvitz & Levy highlight notable decisions on major questions from the California Supreme Court's last term, including voter initiatives, hostile work environment and the economic loss rule.
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DC Circ. Decision Opens Door To NEPA Regulation Litigation
A recent D.C. Circuit decision in Marin Audubon Society v. Federal Aviation Administration could open the door to more litigation over the White House Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act regulations, and could affect how many agencies conduct and interpret environmental assessments, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.
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Service Providers Must Mitigate 'Secondary Target' Risks
A lawsuit recently filed in an Illinois federal court against marketing agency Publicis over its work for opioid manufacturers highlights an uptick in litigation against professional service providers hired by clients that engaged in alleged misconduct — so potential targets of such suits should be sure to conduct proper risk analysis and mitigation, say attorneys at Dechert.
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Opinion
FTC Actions In Oil Cases Go Against Its Own Rulemaking
Two recent Federal Trade Commission actions concerning the oil and gas industry appear to defy its own merger guidelines, with allegations that fall far short of the commission's own standard — raising serious questions about the agency's current approach, say attorneys at Clifford Chance.
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How Global Data Center Regs May Influence US Policies
As regulators around the world react to the growth of data centers, and their increasing consumption of energy, water and land, international policies in this area may influence how the incoming U.S. administration regulates data centers in this country, say attorneys at HWG.