Law360, New York (July 10, 2014, 11:18 AM EDT) -- While many have been waiting for New York's environmental study on hydraulic fracturing, a major impediment to lifting the almost six-year moratorium in the state, the oil and gas industry's attention definitely shifted this month from the regulatory front (or lack thereof) to the litigation front when New York's highest court upheld two local ordinances banning fracking within its borders.[1] Many cities and towns across the country have enacted similar ordinances that effectively ban fracking where state regulations permit such activities. Many of these local ordinances have and will continue to be challenged by companies on the basis of preemption, and courts around the country will have to address the relationship between state and local governments and their respective legislative powers when it comes to regulating the highly debated subject of fracking....