ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ

Environmental

  • September 25, 2025

    Mich. Judge Won't Disqualify Expert From Edenville Dam Trial

    A Michigan state judge overseeing litigation against regulatory agencies over a dam that collapsed and caused widespread flooding said he will not bar an expert from testifying that the government ignored risks and took actions that increased the danger of a dam failure.

  • September 25, 2025

    Tribal Co. Sues Feds Over $2M Military Bridge Project Loss

    A California tribal company is seeking more than $2 million in damages after it says the U.S. Air Force breached a contract for construction of a bridge by providing it with an incomplete engineering report and failing to gain timely environmental approvals for the project.

  • September 25, 2025

    Judge Says NY Discharge Law Usurps Feds' Nuclear Authority

    A federal judge has ruled that a New York law barring the release of radioactive materials into the Hudson River — which was passed in response to the decommissioning of the Indian Point Energy Center nuclear plant — infringed on the federal government's oversight of nuclear safety.

  • September 25, 2025

    Wis. Judge Backs Wildlife Refuge Land Swap Deal

    A Wisconsin federal judge has granted summary judgment to the federal government and two utility companies against all claims in a suit filed by conservationist groups that alleged that the government wrongfully approved a land exchange deal with the utilities so the companies could build part of a 101-mile transmission line project through a wildlife refuge.

  • September 25, 2025

    Driver Says Mazda's Sanctions Bid Is Itself Sanctionable

    The leader of a proposed class of Mazda drivers suing over an alleged oil burning defect is firing back at the automaker's call for sanctions for what it called "frivolous" postjudgment filings, saying Mazda's filing is legally baseless and filled with ad hominem attacks on his attorney, so the company is the one that should face sanctions.

  • September 24, 2025

    DC Judge Won't Reinstate IGs Over 'Obvious' Trump Violation

    A Washington, D.C., federal judge on Wednesday declined to reinstate eight inspectors general whom President Donald Trump fired without warning or rationale, finding that while it is "obvious" the president violated federal law governing the removal of inspectors general, the plaintiffs have not shown irreparable harm.

  • September 24, 2025

    Xcel Energy To Pay $640M To Settle Marshall Fire Lawsuit

    Xcel Energy, Colorado's largest utility company, said Wednesday that it plans to pay roughly $640 million to settle litigation that accused it of causing or contributing to the state's devastating 2021 Marshall Fire.

  • September 24, 2025

    Tower Developer Linked To Menendez Ally Wants Suit Tossed

    The developer behind a disputed high-rise project — once led by a businessman convicted in the bribery scheme involving former U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez — is asking a New Jersey judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a neighboring municipality, arguing the case is incurably flawed.

  • September 24, 2025

    GAO Says Energy Dept. Must Review PFAS At Dozens Of Sites

    The U.S. Department of Energy needs to speed up its review of how forever chemicals are and have been used at its sites across the nation, the congressional watchdog agency said Wednesday.

  • September 24, 2025

    Philly Alleges Companies Misled About Products' Recyclability

    S.C. Johnson & Son and snack cake maker Bimbo Bakeries USA have been sued by the city of Philadelphia for allegedly misleading consumers about the recyclability of plastics they use in their products.

  • September 24, 2025

    Kirkland, Davis Polk Lead Mirion's $585M Paragon Buy

    Radiation detection company Mirion, advised by Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, on Wednedsay announced that it has agreed to buy Kirkland & Ellis LLP-led nuclear power company Paragon Energy Solutions from private equity shop Windjammer Capital in a $585 million cash deal.

  • September 24, 2025

    Tribal Groups Back 9th Circ. Bid To Block Ariz. Land Transfer

    Two tribal advocacy groups are backing a Ninth Circuit bid to block a 2,400-acre federal land exchange in Arizona to make way for a billion-dollar copper mining project they say will destroy an ancient worship site, arguing that federal policies are systematically stripping Indigenous nations of their homelands.

  • September 24, 2025

    Md. County Backs Landowners In 4th Circ. Power Line Dispute

    A county board of commissioners in Maryland told the Fourth Circuit that a Public Service Energy Group unit trying to build a 67-mile transmission line has no right to conduct testing on private landowners' properties, saying a lower court erred in granting the company access.

  • September 23, 2025

    UC Researchers Win Expanded Injunction Against Grant Cuts

    A California federal judge Monday issued another preliminary injunction ordering the Trump administration to reinstate grants awarded to University of California researchers, this time resurrecting grants awarded by the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Institutes of Health.

  • September 23, 2025

    5th Circ. Won't Disturb EPA's Denial Of Texas Ozone Plan

    The Fifth Circuit on Monday refused to upend a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency decision denying Texas' Clean Air Act implementation plans, finding that the EPA's procedure complied with the law and its reasoning for denying the plans "was sound."

  • September 23, 2025

    New Illinois Law Opens The Door To More Toxic Tort Litigation

    A new Illinois law expanding the state's jurisdictional reach in toxic tort cases has drawn mixed reactions from attorneys, with some praising the law as an added accountability measure for toxic exposure and others decrying it as an open invitation for forum shopping that could clog the state's dockets.

  • September 23, 2025

    Enviro Orgs. Ask 5th Circ. To Review Delfin LNG Project License

    Environmental groups on Monday asked the Fifth Circuit to find that the U.S. Department of Transportation violated federal law when it issued a license for the construction and operation of the Delfin LNG LLC deepwater liquefied natural gas project.

  • September 23, 2025

    Tax Court Slashes $38M In Easement Donation Deductions

    The U.S. Tax Court on Tuesday slashed $38 million in deductions for donations of two conservation easements across hundreds of acres in Georgia, finding one lacked the required conservation purpose and neither was potentially headed for mining development as the donors had claimed.

  • September 23, 2025

    Ship's Owner Can't Shift Blame For Bridge Collapse, Court Told

    The Singaporean owner and manager of the container ship that slammed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge and triggered its collapse cannot try to shift blame for its own failings, the South Korean shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. has told a Pennsylvania federal court.

  • September 23, 2025

    4 Firms Pave Way For $1B All-Cash Drainage Systems Deal

    Advanced Drainage Systems said Tuesday it will acquire National Diversified Sales, the water management business of Germany's Norma Group SE, in an all-cash deal valued at about $1 billion.

  • September 23, 2025

    Foes Slam Feds' GHG Plan As Trump Decries Green 'Scam'

    Green groups and democrats are strongly opposing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's proposal to abandon a key greenhouse gas policy, as President Donald Trump on Tuesday called climate change "the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world."

  • September 23, 2025

    EPA Still Can't Escape Tort Claims Over Flint Water Crisis

    A Michigan federal judge has again denied a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency request to dismiss Federal Tort Claims Act litigation seeking to hold the government liable for allegedly lax oversight of the water system in Flint, Michigan.

  • September 23, 2025

    Law Firms Sued Over La. Hurricane Claim Fee Scheme

    Two law firms and certain attorneys engaged in a scheme to "grossly and blatantly" inflate damages estimates for hurricane-related property insurance claims in order to "collect an exorbitant fee which they would all share," a group of seven Louisiana residents told a Louisiana federal court.

  • September 23, 2025

    Chemours Asks 4th Circ. To Toss Ohio River Pollution Order

    Chemours told the Fourth Circuit a West Virginia federal judge botched the law and the science about the risks a forever chemical poses when he ordered its Washington Works facility to stop discharging permit-exceeding amounts of the substance into the Ohio River.

  • September 23, 2025

    Sullivan & Cromwell Guides Sempra On $10B Subsidiary Sale

    Sempra said Tuesday it has agreed to sell a 45% stake in its infrastructure subsidiary to a consortium led by KKR and Canada's CPP Investments for $10 billion, while separately securing $7 billion of equity financing led by Blackstone to advance a major liquefied natural gas project in Texas.

Expert Analysis

  • Ch. 11 Ruling Voiding $2M Litigation Funding Sends A Warning

    Author Photo

    A recent Texas bankruptcy court decision that a postconfirmation litigation trust has no obligations to repay a completely drawn down $2 million litigation funding agreement serves as a warning for estate administrators and funders to properly disclose the intended financing, say attorneys at Kleinberg Kaplan.

  • Demystifying The Civil Procedure Rules Amendment Process

    Author Photo

    Every year, an advisory committee receives dozens of proposals to amend the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, most of which are never adopted — but a few pointers can help maximize the likelihood that an amendment will be adopted, says Josh Gardner at DLA Piper.

  • Parenting Skills That Can Help Lawyers Thrive Professionally

    Author Photo

    As kids head back to school, the time is ripe for lawyers who are parents to consider how they can incorporate their parenting skills to build a deep, meaningful and sustainable legal practice, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Teaching Trial Advocacy Makes Us Better Lawyers

    Author Photo

    Teaching trial advocacy skills to other lawyers makes us better litigators because it makes us question our default methods, connect to young attorneys with new perspectives and focus on the needs of the real people at the heart of every trial, say Reuben Guttman, Veronica Finkelstein and Joleen Youngers.

  • Navigating Brazil's Regulations, Incentives For Green Projects

    Author Photo

    Brazil's evolving environmental regulatory framework and ongoing moves to attract international capital for climate-focused projects may appeal to U.S.-based companies and investors interested in sustainable development — but taking advantage of these opportunities requires careful planning and meaningful stakeholder engagement, says Milena Angulo at Guimarães.

  • Federal AI Action Plan Marks A Shift For Health And Bio Fields

    Author Photo

    The Trump administration's recent artificial intelligence action plan significantly expands federal commitments across biomedical agencies, defining a pivotal moment for attorneys and others involved in research collaborations, managing regulatory compliance and AI-related intellectual property, says Mehrin Masud-Elias at Arnold & Porter.

  • Data Center Construction Trends, Challenges In Ill. And Texas

    Author Photo

    Data centers in Illinois and Texas are reshaping the industrial landscape, but this growth brings legal complexity, so developers, contractors and corporate legal departments must have a deep understanding of each state's legal terrain and take a proactive approach to risk management, say attorneys at Hicks Johnson.

  • 5 Key Steps To Prepare For Oral Arguments

    Author Photo

    Whether presenting oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court or a local county judge, effective preparation includes the same essential ingredients, from organizing arguments in blocks to maximizing the potential of mock exercises, says Allison Rocker at Baker McKenzie.

  • Definitions Of 'Waters Of The United States' Ebb And Flow

    Author Photo

    The issue of defining whether "waters of the United States" include streams and channels that sometimes have water and sometimes do not has been fraught since the U.S. Supreme Court's 2006 Rapanos decision, but a possible new rule may help property owners stay out of court, says Neal McAliley at Carlton Fields.

  • Unpacking A New Era of Compliance For Submarine Cables

    Author Photo

    After decades of operating under its old regulatory framework, the Federal Communications Commission has modernized its oversight of submarine cable infrastructure, which presents a complex array of legal and policy challenges, including heightened national security vulnerabilities, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • How Sustainability Reporting Changed In The 1st Half Of 2025

    Author Photo

    Sustainability reporting is evolving rapidly, with fewer S&P 500 companies publishing reports in the first half of 2025 than in the same period last year, suggesting that companies are becoming more selective and intentional about their reporting, say analysts at Orrick.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From Texas AUSA To BigLaw

    Author Photo

    As I learned when I transitioned from an assistant U.S. attorney to a BigLaw partner, the move from government to private practice is not without its hurdles, but it offers immense potential for growth and the opportunity to use highly transferable skills developed in public service, says Jeffery Vaden at Bracewell.

  • Advice For 1st-Gen Lawyers Entering The Legal Profession

    Author Photo

    Nikki Hurtado at The Ferraro Law Firm tells her story of being a first-generation lawyer and how others who begin their professional journeys without the benefit of playbooks handed down by relatives can turn this disadvantage into their greatest strength.

  • FTC Focus: When Green Goals And Antitrust Law Collide

    Author Photo

    A recently concluded Federal Trade Commission investigation has turned an emissions deal involving major U.S. heavy-duty truck manufacturers that was brokered by the California Air Resources Board into a cautionary tale about the potential for environmental agreements to run afoul of competition rules, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • Calif. Board's Financial-Grade Climate Standards Raise Stakes

    Author Photo

    After the California Air Resources Board's recent workshop, it is clear that the state's climate disclosure laws will be enforced with standards comparable to financial reporting — so companies should act now to implement assurance-grade systems, formalize governance responsibilities and coordinate reporting across their organizations, says Thierry Montoya at Frost Brown.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Environmental archive.