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Environmental
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May 29, 2025
Kids Launch New Climate Case Over Trump Energy Orders
The U.S. government on Thursday was hit with a fresh lawsuit from youths alleging that federal energy policies harm their future by exacerbating climate change, specifically targeting President Donald Trump's executive orders aimed at boosting fossil fuels.
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May 29, 2025
Texas Bars Some Property Tax Hikes Above Voter-OK'd Rates
Texas will prohibit school districts from adopting property tax rates above voter-approved thresholds in response to a natural disaster if voters previously rejected a similar proposed rate increase, under a bill signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.
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May 29, 2025
Crowell & Moring Hires Ex-EPA Deputy Assistant Admin In SF
Crowell & Moring LLP announced on Thursday the hiring of a former deputy assistant administrator from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as senior counsel in the firm's environmental and regulatory enforcement groups in its San Francisco office.
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May 29, 2025
RJ Reynolds Lied About Carbon Offset Of Vapes, Suit Says
A group of California vape users is suing R.J. Reynolds Vapor Co. and its U.S. and British affiliates in federal court, alleging that its claims that the Vuse vape is the first carbon-neutral electronic cigarette are misleading.
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May 29, 2025
High Court Restores Federal Approval Of Utah Oil Railway
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the federal government's approval of a rail project intended to haul crude oil out of Utah's Uinta Basin.
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May 28, 2025
16 States Sue Trump Admin Over Cuts To Science Grants
A coalition of 16 state attorneys general have sued the Trump administration in New York federal court on Wednesday to stop it from cutting millions of dollars in grant funds from the National Science Foundation for scientific research and programs aimed at enhancing diversity, equity and inclusion in STEM fields and environmental justice.
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May 28, 2025
Elon Musk Is Leaving White House Role, Trump Admin Says
Billionaire Elon Musk is ending his work with President Donald Trump and the federal Department of Government Efficiency, a White House official confirmed Wednesday evening.
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May 28, 2025
DOI Faces Energy Co. Suit Over Fort Berthold Oil Lease
A Colorado energy company has sued the federal government over what it says is an approved 60-year-old oil and gas lease, saying that it was suddenly told in April that it never actually owned an interest in the lease on an Indian reservation in North Dakota.
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May 28, 2025
NRC Has No Defense For New License Rules, DC Circ. Told
Two anti-nuclear power groups are contending before the D.C. Circuit that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is offering inconsistent arguments in defense of updated regulations for renewing nuclear power plant operating licenses.
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May 28, 2025
Feds Ask SC Judge To Toss Suit Over Frozen Grant Funding
The Trump administration urged a South Carolina federal judge to dismiss a complaint challenging its authority to freeze and terminate grant funding for lack of jurisdiction, as it also appeals an order directing it to restore several dozen grants funded by Congress.
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May 28, 2025
Feds Tell Justices 9th Circ. Wrongly OK'd CWA Citizen Suit
The federal government is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to sink an environmental group's Clean Water Act citizen suit seeking to enforce the terms of a Washington state-issued pollutant-discharge permit that is stricter than the law requires.
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May 28, 2025
Judge Shields NY Congestion Pricing From Feds' Threats
New York's congestion pricing program can keep running at least through the fall, after a federal judge on Wednesday signaled that the U.S. Department of Transportation likely overstepped its authority by purportedly terminating a federal agreement that gave congestion pricing the green light.
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May 28, 2025
Feds Won't Appeal Offshore Fish Farming Permit Decision
The federal government will not appeal a decision to set aside a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' permit intended to speed up industrial aquaculture in public ocean waters, ending the dispute and any future use of the structures off the country's eastern and western coasts.
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May 28, 2025
ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ Energy Loan Rule An 'Unlawful Power Grab,' Suit Says
Lenders that finance clean energy home improvement projects on Wednesday challenged a Biden-era rule that applies standard mortgage protections to loans where homeowners pay for such projects through property tax bills, saying the rule is unlawful and threatens to kill their business.
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May 28, 2025
DOL Tells 5th Circ. It Will Craft New ESG Rule For 401(k) Plans
The U.S. Department of Labor told the Fifth Circuit on Wednesday that it will launch new rulemaking and move "as expeditiously as possible" to replace Biden administration regulations on whether fiduciaries can consider issues like climate change and social justice when choosing retirement plan investments.
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May 28, 2025
SunCoke Energy Expanding With $325M Phoenix Global Buy
SunCoke Energy Inc. said Wednesday that it has agreed to acquire Phoenix Global, a privately held provider of metals and mining services, for $325 million on a cash-free, debt-free basis.
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May 28, 2025
Groups Claim Mass. Offshore Wind Will Harm Views, Wildlife
Opponents of a permitted offshore wind project that would provide power to Massachusetts have sued in D.C. federal court, arguing turbines would bring problems for marine life and disrupt views on the historic islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard.
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May 28, 2025
Insurance Atty Talks FEMA Cuts As Storm, Fire Seasons Near
As hurricane and wildfire seasons approach, Anthony Lopez, founder of the law firm Your Insurance Attorney, told Law360 Real Estate Authority that with natural disasters intensifying, the Trump administration's cuts to FEMA are likely to put more pressure on states and property owners in an already challenging insurance environment.
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May 27, 2025
Musk, DOGE Fail To Nix States' Suit Against 'Limitless' Power
Fourteen states can proceed in their lawsuit challenging Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency's influence in the federal government after a D.C. federal judge Tuesday refused to toss their suit, rejecting the government's contention that Musk wasn't subject to the U.S. Constitution's appointments clause.
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May 27, 2025
Proterra Investors Push For Final OK Of $29M Settlement
Proterra Inc. investors have asked a California federal court to sign off on a $29 million deal resolving allegations that the bankrupt electric-vehicle maker's executives misled them about liquidity issues, according to a motion for final approval of the settlement filed Tuesday.
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May 27, 2025
Greenpeace Fights To Walk Back $666M Pipeline Verdict
Greenpeace on Tuesday continued its post-trial attack on a $666 million defamation and property damage case against Dakota Access pipeline builder Energy Transfer, telling a North Dakota judge that a lack of evidence requires overturning numerous jury findings.
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May 27, 2025
Gorsuch Says Oak Flat Ruling Will Harm Native Generations
The Supreme Court's decision to deny an Apache nonprofit's petition that looked to save a centuries-old Arizona Indigenous worship site from destruction to make way for a multibillion-dollar copper mine is a grievous mistake with consequences that threaten to reverberate for generations, Justice Neil Gorsuch said in a Tuesday dissent.
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May 27, 2025
Bayer, Monsanto On Hook For $611M Roundup Cancer Awards
A Missouri appellate panel Tuesday affirmed a trial court's $611 million award reduced from a jury's $1.56 billion verdict for three people who claimed their cancer was caused by Bayer unit Monsanto Co.'s Roundup weedkiller, saying a law professor's testimony about a Ninth Circuit decision was not prejudicial.
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May 27, 2025
9th Circ. Revives Tribes', Green Groups' Power Line Suit
The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday revived a lawsuit challenging the federal government's decision to allow a 520-mile power line route through cultural sites, saying in a published opinion that a coalition of tribes and conservation groups plausibly alleged the government authorized construction before properly identifying historic sites the project affected.
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May 27, 2025
Expert Says DuPont Knew Of PFAS Risk At NJ Site
A former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency policy adviser told a New Jersey federal court on Tuesday that E.I. du Pont de Nemours knew of the risk of "forever chemicals" and failed to disclose that risk to federal and Garden State regulators despite its obligation to do so.
Expert Analysis
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Legal Ethics Considerations For Law Firm Pro Bono Deals
If a law firm enters into a pro bono deal with the Trump administration in exchange for avoiding or removing an executive order, it has an ethical obligation to create a written settlement agreement with specific terms, which would mitigate some potential conflict of interest problems, says Andrew Altschul at Buchanan Angeli.
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Avoiding Compliance Risks Under Calif. Recycling Label Law
CalRecycle's recently published final findings on California's S.B. 343 — determining which products and packaging materials are eligible to use the "chasing arrows" recyclability symbol — offer key guidance that businesses operating in the state must heed to avert the risk of penalties or litigation, says Christopher Smith at Greenspoon Marder.
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Series
Playing Football Made Me A Better Lawyer
While my football career ended over 15 years ago, the lessons the sport taught me about grit, accountability and resilience have stayed with me and will continue to help me succeed as an attorney, says Bert McBride at Trenam.
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10 Arbitrations And A 5th Circ. Ruling Flag Arb. Clause Risks
The ongoing arbitral saga of Sullivan v. Feldman, which has engendered proceedings before 10 different arbitrators in Texas and Louisiana along with last month's Fifth Circuit opinion, showcases both the risks and limitations of arbitration clauses in retainer agreements for resolving attorney-client disputes, says Christopher Blazejewski at Sherin and Lodgen.
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How Trump Energy Order May Challenge State Climate Efforts
Even if the Trump administration's recent executive order targeting state and local environmental, climate and clean energy laws, regulations and programs doesn't result in successful legal challenges to state authority, the order could discourage state legislatures from taking further climate action, say attorneys at Foley Hoag.
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EPA's Proposed GHG Reform Could Hinder Climate Regulation
The Trump administration will reconsider the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's landmark 2009 greenhouse gas endangerment finding, which could leave the U.S. federal government with no statutory authority whatsoever to regulate climate change or greenhouse gas emissions, says David Smith at Manatt.
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Series
Power To The Paralegals: The Value Of Unified State Licensing
Texas' proposal to become the latest state to license paraprofessional providers of limited legal services could help firms expand their reach and improve access to justice, but consumers, attorneys and allied legal professionals would benefit even more if similar programs across the country become more uniform, says Michael Houlberg at the University of Denver.
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What Greenwashing Looks Like, And How To Navigate Claims
Recent cases show that consumers seeking to challenge sustainability claims as greenwashing face significant legal hurdles, and that companies can avoid liability by emphasizing context, says Felicia Boyd at Norton Rose.
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11 Tips For Contractors Dealing With DOD Staff Reductions
Defense contractors should prepare for a wide range of disruptions related to procurement and contract administration that are likely amid federal workforce reductions, say attorneys at Covington.
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4 Takeaways From La. Coastal Wetland Damage Verdict
A recent $745 million verdict in a case filed by a Louisiana parish against Chevron for violating a Louisiana environmental law illustrates that climate-related liabilities pose increasing risk and litigation risk may not follow a red state versus blue state divide, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.
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10 Soft Skills Every GC Should Master
As businesses face shifting regulatory and technological uncertainty, general counsel will need to strengthen certain soft skills to succeed, from admitting when they make a mistake to maintaining a healthy dose of dispassion, says Douglas Brown at Manatt.
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How Proxy Advisory Firms Are Approaching AI And DEI
Institutional Shareholder Services' and Glass Lewis' annual updates to their proxy voting guidelines reflect some of the biggest issues of the day, including artificial intelligence and DEI, and companies should parse these changes carefully, say attorneys at Cahill Gordon.
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Traversing The Shifting Sands Of ESG Reporting Compliance
Multinational corporations have increasingly found themselves between a rock and a hard place attempting to comply with EU and California ESG requirements while not running afoul of expanding U.S. anti-ESG regimes, but focusing on what is material to shareholder value and establishing strong governance can help, say attorneys at MoFo.
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An Unrestrained, Bright-Eyed View Of Legal AI's Future
Todd Itami at Covington offers a bright-eyed, laughing-all-the-way, skydive look at what the legal industry could look like after an artificial intelligence revolution, which he believes may happen much sooner and more dramatically than we expect.
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Tracking The Evolution In Litigation Finance
Despite continued innovation, litigation finance remains an immature market with borrowers recieving significantly different terms as lenders learn to value cases, which firms need a strong handle on to ensure lending terms do not overwhelm collateral value, says Robert Wilkins at Lightfoot Franklin.