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Environmental

  • June 27, 2025

    3 DOL Policy Shifts On Benefits Attys' Radar

    Since President Donald Trump's administration took over in January, the U.S. Department of Labor has changed its tack on several issues related to employee benefits. Here, Law360 looks at three moves that caught lawyers' attention.

  • June 27, 2025

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: Last-Minute Settlements Head Off Trials

    Untouched by the summer slump, the North Carolina Business Court kicked off June with a sanctions order against a biogas company caught spurning court orders and a new complaint by a former NFL player accusing his longtime financial adviser of defrauding him for decades.

  • June 26, 2025

    Bayer Investors' $38M Settlement Over Monsanto Deal OK'd

    A California federal judge on Thursday preliminarily approved Bayer AG's $38 million settlement with investors who accused the German multinational of downplaying litigation risks related to the weedkiller Roundup when it acquired Monsanto in 2018, saying the deal appeared to be "fair, reasonable and adequate."

  • June 26, 2025

    Calif. FAIR Plan Fire Policy Is Unlawful, Court Rules

    Fire insurance offered by California's insurer of last resort does not meet the minimum coverage standards laid out in the state insurance code, a California state court ruled, finding the policy's definition of "direct physical loss" and its smoke damage provision to be unlawfully restrictive.

  • June 26, 2025

    EPA Illegally Ended Environmental Justice Grants, Groups Say

    Environmental groups, a Native American village and other local governments have alleged in a proposed class action in D.C. federal court that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency unlawfully stopped a $3 billion climate grant program created by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.

  • June 26, 2025

    Suit Blaming Big Oil For Heat Wave Death Moved To Fed Court

    Chevron removed to Seattle federal court a first-of-its kind wrongful death suit brought by the daughter of a woman who died during a 2021 heat wave alleging oil and gas giants — including BP PLC, ConocoPhillips and Shell PLC — knew for decades their fossil fuel products would one day "claim lives."

  • June 26, 2025

    Solar Co. Meyer Burger Can Tap $10M DIP To Fund Ch. 11 Sale

    Swiss solar panel maker Meyer Burger's U.S. unit secured a Delaware bankruptcy judge's interim approval Thursday for a $10 million debtor-in-possession loan as it looks to sell two manufacturing sites in Chapter 11.

  • June 26, 2025

    FERC Chair Aims To Stay Beyond His Term's End

    As his potential replacement awaits a U.S. Senate confirmation hearing, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Mark Christie said Thursday that he plans to oversee the agency's next monthly open meeting in July, but otherwise remained tight-lipped about his impending departure.

  • June 26, 2025

    Gordon Rees Adds Glazier Yee Toxic Tort Ace In LA, St. Louis

    Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP is expanding its litigation team, bringing in an environmental and toxic tort specialist from boutique firm Glazier Yee LLP as a partner in its St. Louis and Los Angeles offices.

  • June 26, 2025

    EPA Seeks To Appeal Flint Water Crisis Immunity Ruling

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has asked a Michigan federal court for permission to appeal an immunity ruling in the Flint water crisis litigation to the Sixth Circuit, saying a trip to the federal appellate court could bring the case to a more efficient resolution.

  • June 26, 2025

    Akerman Adds Steptoe Energy Transactional Atty In DC

    Akerman LLP has hired a former Steptoe LLP partner who works on the regulatory, corporate and transactional aspects of energy deals and with related project development matters, the firm announced Wednesday.

  • June 26, 2025

    Lime Revs Up IPO, Crypto's Prospects Rise, And More Rumors

    Uber Technologies Inc.-backed electric bike startup Lime is moving forward on a U.S. initial public offering, while more crypto ventures are seeking public listings and insurance giant BrightHouse inches closer to a sale.

  • June 25, 2025

    Texas Clinic Says Insurer Owes $2M For Hurricane Damage

    A hospital clinic accused its insurer in Texas federal court Wednesday of severely underpaying its hurricane claim following a "substandard, cursory inspection" ignoring "obvious" damages, saying it only offered to cover roughly $3,500 worth of damage to a ventilation unit while the other damage totaled nearly $2.3 million.

  • June 25, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Backs EPA's Firing Of 'Disruptive' Whistleblower

    The Federal Circuit upheld a decision finding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would've fired a federal employee even if she wasn't whistleblowing on its failure to submit affirmative employment plans, ruling Wednesday that while there was significant motive to retaliate, there's also evidence the employee was "disrespectful, disruptive and discourteous" toward colleagues.

  • June 25, 2025

    Michigan Builders Sue State Over Energy Code Mandates

    Michigan homebuilders have sued to challenge the state's adoption of new construction codes, saying the energy efficiency demands will make new homes more expensive.

  • June 25, 2025

    Insurer Seeks Exit From $1.7M Oil Pipeline Explosion Verdict

    An insurer for a company specializing in providing nitrogen services for oil pipelines told a Texas federal court it should owe no coverage for a more than $1.7 million jury verdict against the company stemming from a pipeline explosion, pointing to exclusions for breach of contract and faulty work.

  • June 25, 2025

    Hodgson Russ Adds Ex-GC Of NY Enviro Agency

    Hodgson Russ LLP has hired the former longtime deputy commissioner and general counsel of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation to bolster its environmental and energy practices and expand the reach of its Albany, New York, office.

  • June 25, 2025

    FCC To Consult Tribes On Wireless Cos.' NEPA Petition

    The Federal Communications Commission plans to consult with tribal governments on a wireless industry proposal to cut red tape associated with the National Environmental Policy Act for cell towers, following comments from Native American organizations blasting the plan and saying it would threaten sacred lands.

  • June 25, 2025

    Hanford Contractor To Pay $6.5M To Settle Fraud Allegations

    A contractor tapped to manage and operate a tank farm holding millions of gallons of hazardous and radioactive waste at the Hanford nuclear site in Washington will pay $6.5 million to settle claims it overcharged the U.S. Department of Energy for labor hours, according to federal prosecutors.

  • June 25, 2025

    Paper Products Co. Settles Mich. AG's PFAS Lawsuit

    A manufacturer of paper products has agreed to clean up a composting site to resolve allegations the company dumped paper sludge containing hazardous PFAS chemicals, Michigan's attorney general announced on Wednesday.

  • June 24, 2025

    Wash. Judge Blocks Trump Admin's EV Charging Funds Freeze

    A Seattle federal judge Tuesday issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from withholding funds for electric vehicle charging infrastructure projects in 14 states, but stopped short of applying it to two other states and Washington, D.C., and stayed the order to give the administration time to appeal.

  • June 24, 2025

    State AGs Sue Trump Admin To Stop Billions In Grant Cuts

    A coalition of 21 states and the District of Columbia filed suit Tuesday in Massachusetts federal court, accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully using a single clause "buried in federal regulations" to nix billions of dollars in federal grant funding to the states.

  • June 24, 2025

    5th Circ. Says EPA Ignored Cos. To Push Efficiency Testing Rule

    The Fifth Circuit has thrown out part of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule for determining measures for fuel efficiency, finding Tuesday that the agency used a faulty methodology to justify tightening standards and outright ignored comments when creating the rule.

  • June 24, 2025

    NC Senate Backs $700M Boost For Hurricane Helene Recovery

    The North Carolina Senate has signed off on a proposal to allocate another $700 million to the state's Hurricane Helene Disaster Recovery Fund, including $75 million for road and bridge repairs and $70 million to meet Federal Emergency Management Agency's state matching requirements.

  • June 24, 2025

    Ohio Derailment Deal Admin Wants Explanation For Ouster

    The ex-administrator of Norfolk Southern's $600 million settlement with the people and businesses of East Palestine, Ohio, is asking a federal court to share why it was terminated, saying in filings Monday that the company had no idea the plaintiffs' counsel were going to ask for a new administrator.

Expert Analysis

  • Issues To Watch At ABA's Antitrust Spring Meeting

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    Attorneys at Freshfields consider the future of antitrust law and competition enforcement amid agency leadership changes and other emerging developments likely to dominate discussion at the American Bar Association's Antitrust Spring Meeting this week.

  • Tracking Changes To AI Evidence Under Federal Rules

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    As the first quarter of 2025 draws to a close, important changes to the Federal Rules of Evidence regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the courtroom are on the horizon, including how to handle evidence that is a product of machine learning, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • State Extended Producer Responsibility Laws: Tips For Cos.

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    As states increasingly shift the onus of end-of-life product management from consumers and local governments to the businesses that produce, distribute or sell certain items, companies must track the changing landscape and evaluate the applicability of these new laws and regulations to their operations, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Law Firm Executive Orders Create A Legal Ethics Minefield

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    Recent executive orders targeting BigLaw firms create ethical dilemmas — and raise the specter of civil or criminal liability — for the government attorneys tasked with implementing them and for the law firms that choose to make agreements with the administration, say attorneys at Buchalter.

  • 5 Steps To Promote Durable, Pro-Industry Environmental Regs

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    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's planned wave of deregulation will require lengthy reviews, and could be undone by legal challenges and future changes of administration — but industry involvement in rulemaking, litigation, trade associations, and state and federal legislation can help ensure favorable and long-lasting regulatory policies, say attorneys at Balch & Bingham.

  • Firms Must Embrace Alternative Billing Models Or Fall Behind

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    As artificial intelligence tools eliminate inefficiencies and the Big Four accounting firms enter the legal market, law firms that pivot from the entrenched billable hour model to outcomes-based pricing will see a distinct competitive advantage, says attorney William Brewer.

  • Key Insurance Issues Likely To Arise From NY Superfund Law

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    The recently enacted New York Climate Change Superfund Act imposes a massive $75 billion in liabilities on energy companies in the fossil fuel industry, which can be expected to look to their insurers for coverage, raising a slew of coverage issues both old and new, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • How Trump Policies Are Affecting The Right To Repair

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    Recent policy changes by the second Trump administration — ranging from deregulatory initiatives to tariff increases — are likely to have both positive and negative effects on the ability of independent repair shops and individual consumers to exercise their right to repair electronic devices, say attorneys at Carter Ledyard.

  • How Attorneys Can Master The Art Of On-Camera Presence

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    As attorneys are increasingly presented with on-camera opportunities, they can adapt their traditional legal skills for video contexts — such as virtual client meetings, marketing content or media interviews — by understanding the medium and making intentional adjustments, says Kerry Barrett.

  • Series

    Baseball Fantasy Camp Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    With six baseball fantasy experiences under my belt, I've learned time and again that I didn't make the wrong career choice, but I've also learned that baseball lessons are life lessons, and I'm a better lawyer for my time at St. Louis Cardinals fantasy camp, says Scott Felder at Wiley.

  • DOJ Immigration Playbook May Take Cues From A 2017 Case

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    A record criminal resolution with a tree trimming company accused of knowingly employing unauthorized workers in 2017 may provide clues as to how the U.S. Department of Justice’s immigration crackdown will touch American companies, which should prepare now for potential enforcement actions, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • NM Case Shows Power Of Environmental Public Nuisance Law

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    A recent ruling from a New Mexico appeals court finding that a pattern of environmental violations, even without any substantial impact on a nearby community, can trigger nuisance liability — including potential damages and injunctive relief — has important implications for regulated entities in the state, says Kaleb Brooks at Spencer Fane.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From Fed. Prosecutor To BigLaw

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    Making the jump from government to private practice is no small feat, but, based on my experience transitioning to a business-driven environment after 15 years as an assistant U.S. attorney, it can be incredibly rewarding and help you become a more versatile lawyer, says Michael Beckwith at Dickinson Wright.

  • Opinion

    After Fires, Calif. Must Streamline Enviro Reviews For Housing

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    Recent waivers to the California Environmental Quality Act and other laws granted by California Gov. Gavin Newsom to expedite reconstruction of residential property damaged in the Los Angeles wildfires are laudable — but given the state's widespread housing shortage, policymakers should extend the same benefits to other communities, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • State Securities Enforcers May Fill A Federal Enforcement Gap

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission appears poised to take a lighter touch under the new administration, but state enforcement efforts are likely to continue unabated, and potentially even increase, particularly with regard to digital assets and ESG disclosures, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

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