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Environmental

  • May 02, 2025

    Texas-Led AGs Defend BlackRock Coal Investments Suit

    A coalition of Republican states led by Texas are arguing that BlackRock Inc.'s public commitments to reducing its carbon footprint are evidence that it and two other leading asset managers teamed up to suppress the production of coal in the United States, asking a federal judge not to dismiss their case against the firms.

  • May 02, 2025

    Trump Proposes Billions In Cuts To EPA State Grant Programs

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would lose more than half of its funding compared with 2025 under the 2026 budget request released Friday by the Trump administration, with proposed cuts to drinking water infrastructure grants for states amounting to $2.4 billion. 

  • May 02, 2025

    Texas City Backs Exxon In Recycling Defamation Suit

    The city of Beaumont, Texas, sided with Exxon in its defamation lawsuit against California's attorney general and a coalition of conservation groups, telling a court the company's advanced recycling program provided needed innovation for coastal communities.

  • May 02, 2025

    NJ Panel Affirms $2.6M Coverage Payout In Cleanup Case

    A New Jersey appeals court on Friday upheld a lower court's decision finding that under Massachusetts law an insurer owed a BASF entity only $2.6 million in coverage for underlying environmental remediation costs after the lower court found a prior, larger coverage calculation it had adopted was "palpably incorrect."

  • May 02, 2025

    Debevoise Guides Ara Partners On $800M Low-Carbon Fund

    Ara Partners has raised more than $800 million for its first infrastructure fund, aimed at cutting carbon emissions from the industrial economy, with legal guidance from Debevoise & Plimpton LLP.

  • May 02, 2025

    CR Bard Owes $20M In Ga. Ethylene Oxide Cancer Trial

    A Georgia jury awarded $20 million in compensatory damages on Friday to a man who said his cancer was caused by exposure to ethylene oxide from C.R. Bard's medical sterilization plant, sending the case to a second phase for punitive damages.

  • May 02, 2025

    Contractors Settle Mass. AG's YMCA Asbestos Claims

    The Massachusetts Attorney General's Office said Friday that two contractors will pay $150,000 each to settle claims that their faulty asbestos removal at a YMCA might have exposed schoolchildren, building residents and staff to carcinogenic particles.

  • May 02, 2025

    Groups Seek Order Halting Trump's Restructuring Of Gov't

    A California district court must stop federal agencies from moving ahead with President Donald Trump's directive to reorganize and terminate government workers, unions and other groups argued, calling for a temporary restraining order based on alleged harms from the administration's "radical restructuring."

  • May 02, 2025

    Miner, Recreationists Look To Dissolve Chuckwalla Monument

    A miner and an advocacy group have asked a Michigan federal court to revoke the protected status of the Chuckwalla National Monument in a suit that takes aim at presidential power to protect vast areas of federal land.

  • May 01, 2025

    VW, Audi Say Recall Fixes Nullify EV Fire-Risk Lawsuit

    Drivers who claimed Audi of America LLC and Volkswagen Group of America Inc. sold them electric vehicles with defective batteries that could short circuit and catch fire while driving have never actually suffered this alleged issue, the automakers said in their bid seeking to dismiss the proposed class action.

  • May 01, 2025

    States, Green Groups Look To Vacate NEPA Ruling

    States that had asked the Eighth Circuit to revive vacated National Environmental Policy Act regulations are now abandoning their appeal because the White House has eliminated the standards — but they're still asking that a lower court's decision striking down the regulations be overturned.

  • May 01, 2025

    CR Bard Owes For Plant Neighbor's Illness, Jury Told

    A Georgia jury heard in closing arguments on Thursday that C.R. Bard's medical sterilization plant wantonly polluted the air with ethylene oxide and caused a man's cancer, while the company said the man's exposure was nowhere near danger levels.

  • May 01, 2025

    Insurance Pros Stress Disaster Mitigation In Senate Hearing

    A panel of insurance experts stressed in front of a U.S. Senate committee Thursday the importance of mitigation efforts, such as strengthening building codes and hardening homes, as the experts discussed how prices in the property insurance market have soared because of recent natural disasters across the country.

  • May 01, 2025

    Senate Votes To Strike EPA 'Once In, Always In' Rule Update

    The U.S. Senate on Thursday voted to eliminate a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule aimed at restricting industrial facilities' harmful air emissions after being reclassified as a less severe pollution source.

  • May 01, 2025

    Hawaii Tenant's Tainted Water Eviction Claims Survive Ruling

    A Hawaii federal judge preserved a tenant's claims that he was effectively evicted from his home when a landlord failed to identify or warn of water contamination caused by leaks in 2021 at a U.S. Navy fuel storage facility on Pearl Harbor.

  • May 01, 2025

    Calif. AG Can't Dodge ACC Recycling Subpoena Suit

    The American Chemistry Council can move forward with its challenge to a since-withdrawn subpoena from the California attorney general tied to a plastics pollution probe, a D.C. federal judge ruled Thursday.

  • May 01, 2025

    9th Circ. Asked To Revisit Ruling On Guam Munitions Suit

    A Ninth Circuit decision allowing a Guam group to challenge an Air Force permit renewal application to detonate expired munitions conflicts with precedent and threatens to burden permit applicants, agencies and courts, the U.S. government said in a rehearing petition filed Wednesday.

  • May 01, 2025

    Feds Sue To Block State Climate Suits, Superfund Laws

    The federal government sued to block two states' climate change Superfund laws and stop two other states from launching threatened lawsuits against fossil fuel companies, saying the states' actions jeopardize national energy security.

  • May 01, 2025

    House Votes To Axe Another EPA Emissions Waiver For Calif.

    The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed the third of three Congressional Review Act resolutions that would undo Clean Air Act waivers that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued for California's vehicle emissions programs.

  • May 01, 2025

    Sony Eyes $49B Semiconductor Unit Sale, Plus More Rumors

    Sony could sell its semiconductor unit for $49 billion, while proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis is considering ending its practice of advising shareholder votes on politically charged topics, and AI startup Nscale plans to raise $2.7 billion in private capital to support the construction of data centers around the world.

  • April 30, 2025

    Oil Group Drops Suit After DOI Says Leasing Redo Coming

    The D.C. Circuit on Wednesday granted the American Petroleum Institute's request to dismiss a suit challenging the U.S. Department of the Interior's 2024–29 offshore oil and gas leasing program after the government promised to develop a more industry-friendly plan.

  • April 30, 2025

    House Votes To Nix Two Calif. Air Emissions Waivers

    The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed two Congressional Review Act resolutions that would repeal clean-vehicle waivers for California that were approved by the Biden administration, leaving the fate of the measures up to the Senate.

  • April 30, 2025

    Amazon's Suit Over Soured Solar Deals Survives Dismissal

    Amazon can sue a California-based private equity company and firms tied to a pair of Golden State solar energy developments for allegedly trying to sabotage the projects after signing long-term power purchase deals, a Washington state judge has ruled, rejecting jurisdictional arguments from the defendants.

  • April 30, 2025

    NAACP Fights Bid To Seal Info In Utility's PFAS Suit

    A North Carolina chapter of the NAACP wants to intervene in public water suppliers' forever chemical pollution lawsuit against Chemours and a Corteva subsidiary, saying the information the companies want to conceal should remain available.

  • April 30, 2025

    Schools Say Norfolk Southern Ducked Postderailment Pledge

    The school district for East Palestine, Ohio, filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against Norfolk Southern, claiming the railroad hasn't made good on its promises to help the district recover after a fiery derailment shook the town in 2023.

Expert Analysis

  • Gas Contract Fight Holds Lessons On Force Majeure Clauses

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    Ongoing litigation over gas deliveries during Winter Storm Uri underscores the need for precision and foresight when negotiating force majeure clauses in contracts — particularly in the energy sector, where climate-related disruptions and market volatility are inevitable, but often unpredictable, say attorneys at Spencer Fane.

  • Series

    Adventure Photography Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Photographing nature everywhere from Siberia to Cuba and Iceland to Rwanda provides me with a constant reminder to refresh, refocus and rethink the legal issues that my clients face, says Richard Birmingham at Davis Wright.

  • What Vinyl Acetate's Prop 65 Listing Means For Cos.

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    California's recent move to add vinyl acetate to the Proposition 65 list of carcinogens, with enforcement starting later this year, will have sweeping compliance and risk implications for businesses in the retail, food and beverage, paint, adhesive, industrial manufacturing, and personal care product industries, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Opinion

    Commercial Tree Thinning Should Be Part of Wildfire Control

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    The devastating wildfires currently afflicting California make it clear that the U.S. Forest Service should step up its use of methods including commercial tree removal to lower fire risk — but litigation that drags on for years stymies many of these efforts and endangers the public, says Jeffrey Beelaert at Givens Pursley.

  • 5 Ways To Create Effective Mock Assignments For Associates

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    In order to effectively develop associates’ critical thinking skills, firms should design mock assignments that contain a few key ingredients, from messy fact patterns to actionable feedback, says Abdi Shayesteh at AltaClaro.

  • More Environmental Claims, More Greenwashing Challenges

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    As companies prepare for the 2025 greenwashing landscape, they should take heed of a D.C. appellate decision that shows that environmental claims are increasingly subject to attack and provides plaintiffs with a playbook for challenging corporate claims of sustainability, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Assessing Gary Gensler's Legacy At The SEC

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    Gary Gensler's tenure as U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission chair is defined by a record of commonsense regulation in some areas and social activism in others, and by increasing judicial skepticism about the SEC's authority to fulfill its regulatory, enforcement, administrative law and adjudicatory functions, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Opinion

    Legal Personhood Can Give Natural Entities Their Day In Court

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    Granting legal personhood to natural entities like the River Thames, or vulnerable species like the Pacific bearded seal and Arctic ringed seal, could protect them from ecological threats and the vagaries of politics, and help us transform our relationship with nature, says Sachin Nandha at the International Centre for Sustainability.

  • Artfully Conceding Liability Can Offer Defendants 3 Benefits

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    In the rare case that a company makes the strategic decision to admit liability, it’s important to do so clearly and consistently in order to benefit from the various forms of armor that come from an honest acknowledgment, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.

  • Mentorship Resolutions For The New Year

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    Attorneys tend to focus on personal achievements or career milestones when they set yearly goals, but one important area often gets overlooked in this process — mentoring relationships, which are some of the most effective tools for professional growth, say Kelly Galligan at Rutan & Tucker and Andra Greene at Phillips ADR.

  • Trump's Energy Plans For Generation, Transmission And More

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    The executive orders and presidential memoranda issued by President Donald Trump on the day of his inauguration, unwinding the Biden administration's energy policies and encouraging development of fossil fuels, may have significant impacts on the generation mix, electric transmission construction and the state regulatory environment, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

  • Key Trends In PFAS Regulation And Litigation For 2025

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    The critical policy milestones for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances expected in 2025 will not only shape the trajectory of PFAS regulation, but also set key precedents for environmental accountability, potentially reshaping the corporate approach to these "forever chemicals" for decades to come, say attorneys at MG+M.

  • Series

    Coaching Little League Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While coaching poorly played Little League Baseball early in the morning doesn't sound like a good time, I love it — and the experience has taught me valuable lessons about imperfection, compassion and acceptance that have helped me grow as a person and as a lawyer, says Alex Barnett at DiCello Levitt.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2025

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    Lawyers and their clients must be prepared to navigate an evolving litigation funding market in 2025, made more complicated by a new administration and the increasing overall cost of litigation, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

  • Managing Litigation Side-Switching During 2nd Trump Admin

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    Now that the new presidential administration is in place, the government will likely switch positions in a number of pending cases, and stakeholders should employ strategies to protect their interests, say attorneys at Covington.

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