Environmental

  • April 02, 2024

    La. Property Owners, Insurers To Arbitrate Hurricane Claims

    A Hurricane Ida damage coverage dispute between seven New Orleans-area property owners and their insurers will be stayed pending arbitration, a Louisiana federal judge ruled, agreeing with the insurers that the policy's arbitration agreement is enforceable under the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards.

  • April 02, 2024

    Latham-Led SLB To Buy ChampionX In $7.8B All-Stock Deal

    Energy-focused global technology company SLB and chemistry solutions provider ChampionX Corp. said Tuesday they have agreed for SLB to purchase ChampionX in an all-stock transaction worth nearly $7.8 billion.

  • April 01, 2024

    EPA Asks 4th Circ. To Review Panel's Split Ozone Decision

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has told the Fourth Circuit that a panel of judges incorrectly rejected its attempt to move West Virginia's lawsuit over an ozone regulation program to a different court.

  • April 01, 2024

    Forest Service Must Revisit Changes To Timber Standards

    An Oregon federal judge has agreed to set aside an environmental analysis for timber standard changes the U.S. Forest Service approved for millions of acres of federal land across eastern Oregon and Washington, finding no errors in a magistrate judge's conclusion that the agency violated multiple federal statutes.

  • April 01, 2024

    Feds Catch Win In Alaska Subsistence Fishing Dispute

    A federal judge has granted the U.S. government's bid for an early win in its challenge against Alaska over subsistence fishing rules in the Kuskokwim River, which runs through the state's southwest region, ruling that the United States is entitled to a permanent injunction.

  • April 01, 2024

    States Want Justices To Send Ozone Fight Back To 10th Circ.

    Oklahoma, Utah and a coalition of industry groups are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to declare that their fight over compliance with federal ozone standards belongs in the Tenth Circuit, not the D.C. Circuit.

  • April 01, 2024

    Nike Defeats Greenwashing Suit Over 'Sustainability' Line

    Nike has defeated a proposed class action alleging it greenwashes its clothing by claiming they're made sustainably while using methods that harm the environment, after a Missouri federal judge concluded the plaintiff doesn't explain how she knows the products aren't made with recycled or organic materials and only provides conclusory statements.

  • April 01, 2024

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    Last week, Delaware's Court of Chancery saw a $42.5 million settlement, dismissal of two big suits with two more remanded back, and new cases from shareholders of Walt Disney, Donald Trump's Truth Social, Rivian Automotive and BarkBox.

  • April 01, 2024

    Shell Ordered To Hand Over Docs In Conn. Climate Dispute

    Shell Oil Co. must hand over several documents by the end of April in litigation concerning the company's alleged failure to take into account climate change risks at a fuel storage facility in New Haven, Connecticut, a federal magistrate judge has ruled in an attempt to end the parties' long-running discovery dispute.

  • April 01, 2024

    Tribe, Allies Defend Standing To Fight Corps' Fish Farm Permit

    The Army Corps of Engineers is trying to "muddy the water" to fend off a challenge to a nationwide permit opening ocean waters to aquaculture operations, failing to justify why the permit shouldn't be scrapped, the Quinault Indian Nation and nonprofit allies have told a Washington federal judge.

  • April 01, 2024

    3M Gets Final OK On PFAS Deal Worth Up To $12.5B

    A South Carolina federal judge on Friday gave a final nod on a settlement between 3M and about 12,000 public water systems worth up to $12.5 billion to end claims over so-called forever chemicals in firefighting foam, saying that otherwise it would take years to try the cases.

  • April 01, 2024

    Gas Cos. Must Face State Law Claims In Contamination Row

    Electricity and natural gas company WEC Energy Group Inc. can't dodge all claims by Illinois residents accusing the company and its subsidiary of conspiring with a public relations firm to hide the extent of natural gas contamination in an aquifer that provides drinking water, an Illinois federal judge ruled Sunday.

  • April 01, 2024

    Reduced Dolphin Threat Revives US-New Zealand Fish Trade

    New Zealand's fisheries can begin shipping seafood to the U.S. again, after the U.S. Court of International Trade accepted a finding on Monday that the New Zealand government had taken steps to protect the endangered Maui dolphin from harmful fishing techniques.

  • April 01, 2024

    SunZia Power Line Challenge Is Ripe, Arizona Tribes Say

    A coalition of Arizona tribes and conservation groups challenging the federal government's green light for SunZia Transmission LLC to start building a stretch of its 550-mile, high-voltage power line are defending the timeliness of their bid to halt work and compel the Bureau of Land Management to identify and safeguard cultural sites and sacred areas in the San Pedro Valley.

  • April 01, 2024

    Insurer Defends Gas Station Cleanup Exclusion To 11th Circ.

    An insurer has asked the Eleventh Circuit to reject a Florida gas station owner's bid to make it pay for contamination caused by a leaking underground fuel tank, telling the appeals court the station's policy doesn't cover an incident discovered well before the policy went into effect.

  • April 01, 2024

    GE Vernova Spinoff Approved, Valued At $35.7B

    General Electric Co. said its board has approved the previously announced spinoff of its electric power business GE Vernova, setting the new company up to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on April 2.

  • March 29, 2024

    High Bar To Meet For Novel Protest Over $45B DOE Deal

    The U.S. Department of Energy's deviation from typical federal acquisition rules to award a $45 billion contract to a company previously deemed ineligible is raising eyebrows among government contracting attorneys, but may nonetheless find support in court.

  • March 29, 2024

    Liberty Sues SEC Again Over Climate Disclosure Regs

    Liberty Energy Inc. filed a complaint against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Texas federal court, marking the company's second attempt at challenging the agency's corporate climate disclosure regulations after its previous Fifth Circuit petition was transferred to the Eighth Circuit.

  • March 29, 2024

    Tribes Lose Challenge To Minnesota Water Quality Regs

    A Minnesota federal judge on Friday shot down a suit by two Native American tribes accusing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of allowing the state to adopt less protective water quality standards that could harm their reservations' wildlife and crops.

  • March 29, 2024

    DC Circ. Nixes Challenges To Gas Industry Projects

    Federal energy regulators had broad discretion to approve "good cause" construction deadline extensions for a gas pipeline across New York state and a Texas Gulf Coast gas terminal expansion, according to a D.C. Circuit panel opinion on Friday that rejected conservation groups' challenges to the projects.

  • March 29, 2024

    Nikola Says Convicted Ex-CEO Plotting Illegal Board Takeover

    Electric truck manufacturer Nikola Corp. sued its former CEO and convicted felon Trevor Milton in Arizona federal court Friday, accusing him of scheming with unqualified loyalists to regain control of the company by flouting securities laws, infringing Nikola's trademarks and breaching agreements.

  • March 29, 2024

    No Need To Revisit 'Cultural Resource' Ruling, Teck Argues

    A Teck Resources unit is urging a Washington federal judge to reject the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation's request to reconsider an order dismissing its claims for so-called tribal service losses stemming from a smelter's Columbia River pollution, saying the tribe erroneously argues limitations on natural resource damages don't apply to tribes.

  • March 29, 2024

    Texas Farmers Sue USDA Over Sex, Race Disaster Aid Priorities

    A group of Texas farmers is asking a federal district judge to declare the U.S. Department of Agriculture's disaster assistance and pandemic relief programs unconstitutional, alleging in a complaint Friday that the government distributes the aid based on sex and race in violation of federal anti-discrimination laws.

  • March 29, 2024

    2nd Circ. Backs Insurer In Sanitizer Ad Injury Coverage Suit

    An insurer doesn't owe coverage to a company accused of falsely advertising that its sanitizing products were effective in disinfecting surfaces, the Second Circuit ruled Friday, affirming a lower court's decision that the underlying class action can't be "reasonably construed" to substantially allege a claim of disparagement.

  • March 29, 2024

    Baptist Group Backs Pollution Suit Revival At 5th Circ.

    The National Baptist Convention of America has thrown its support behind Black Louisianans in litigation against St. James Parish, urging the Fifth Circuit to revive the plaintiffs' claims that the parish and the state Legislature intentionally approved harmful petrochemical facilities in predominantly Black districts and not white ones.

Expert Analysis

  • How Color Psychology Can Help Tell Your Trial Narrative

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    Research shows that color is a powerful sensory input that affects memory and perception, so attorneys should understand how, when and why to use certain shades in trial graphics to enhance their narrative and draw jurors’ focus, says Adam Bloomberg at IMS Consulting.

  • Understanding Discovery Obligations In Era Of Generative AI

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Attorneys and businesses must adapt to the unique discovery challenges presented by generative artificial intelligence, such as chatbot content and prompts, while upholding the principles of fairness, transparency and compliance with legal obligations in federal civil litigation, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • Calif. Resource Adequacy Update May Revalue Power Projects

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    The California Public Utilities Commission's recently initiated proceeding to overhaul its resource adequacy framework — part of an effort to maintain the reliability of the state's power system while decarbonizing it — could have significant effects on the valuation of existing and future power generation resources, say Nicholas Gladd and Max Learner at Wilson Sonsini.

  • Forecasting The Impact Of High Court Debit Card Rule Case

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    John Delionado and Aidan Gross at Hunton consider how the U.S. Supreme Court's forthcoming ruling in a retailer's suit challenging a Federal Reserve rule on debit card swipe fees could affect agency regulations both new and old, as well as the businesses that might seek to challenge them.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: Mexico

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    ESG has yet to become part of the DNA of the Mexican business model, but huge strides are being made in that direction, as more stakeholders demand that companies adopt, at the least, a modicum of sustainability commitments and demonstrate how they will meet them, says Carlos Escoto at Galicia Abogados.

  • The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms

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    In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.

  • Taking Action On Interagency Climate Financial Risk Guidance

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    Recent joint guidance from the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on climate-related financial risk management for large institutions makes it clear that banks should be proactive in assessing their risks and preparing for further regulation, says Douglas Thompson at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Opinion

    A Telecom Attorney's Defense Of The Chevron Doctrine

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    The Chevron doctrine, which requires judicial deference to federal regulators, is under attack in two U.S. Supreme Court cases — and while most telecom attorneys likely agree that the Federal Communications Commission is guilty of overrelying on it, the problem is not the doctrine itself, says Carl Northrop at Telecommunications Law Professionals.

  • SEC Whistleblower Action Spotlights Risks For Private Cos.

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent whistleblower action against Monolith Resources holds important implications for private companies, who could face unprecedented regulatory scrutiny amid the agency's efforts to beef up environmental, social and governance reporting and enforcement, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Attorneys Have An Ethical Duty To Protect The Judiciary

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    The tenor of public disagreement and debate has become increasingly hostile against judges, and though the legislative branch is trying to ameliorate this safety gap, lawyers have a moral imperative and professional requirement to stand with judges in defusing attacks against them and their rulings, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.

  • What NJ's Green Remediation Guidance Means For Cleanups

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    Recent guidance from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection promoting greener approaches to restoring contaminated sites demonstrates the state's commitment to sustainability and environmental justice — but could also entail more complexity, higher costs and longer remediation timelines, say J. Michael Showalter and Bradley Rochlen at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Mo. Solar Projects Need Clarity On Enterprise Zone Tax Relief

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    In Missouri, enhanced enterprise zones offer tax abatements that could offset the cost of solar project infrastructure, but developers must be willing to navigate uncertainty about whether the project is classified as real property, say Lizzy McEntire and Anna Kimbrell at Husch Blackwell.

  • AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

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    Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.

  • What To Expect After Colo. Nixes Special Standing Rules

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    Two recent Colorado Supreme Court decisions have abandoned a test to preclude standing in lawsuits challenging government decisions brought by subordinate government entities, which will likely lead to an admixture of results, including opening the door to additional legal challenges between government entities, says John Crisham at Crisham & Holman.

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

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    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

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