Energy

  • March 06, 2024

    Norfolk Southern Can't Shift Cleanup Costs To Tank Car Cos.

    Norfolk Southern cannot dump environmental cleanup costs on seven tank car owners and shipping customers with rail cars transporting chemicals and hazardous materials on the train that derailed in East Palestine last year, an Ohio federal judge said Wednesday.

  • March 06, 2024

    Exxon Kicks Off Arbitration Over Guyana Offshore Oil Project

    ExxonMobil has initiated arbitration in order to retain its right of first refusal over Hess Corp.'s stake in a lucrative oil block off Guyana's Atlantic coast, an Exxon spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday.

  • March 06, 2024

    Enviro Groups Say Colo. Trail Will Increase Cancer Risks

    A D.C. federal judge strained to square two directly conflicting assertions in an ongoing challenge to a Fish and Wildlife Service trail in Colorado Wednesday, one from environmental and health groups claiming that plutonium from the site was certain to cause rare and deadly illnesses to trail-goers and nearby residents, and another from the federal government claiming that the trace levels of plutonium near a former-weapons plant were well below thresholds for concern.

  • March 06, 2024

    M&A Values Getting Boost Amid Election-Year Scramble

    The value of U.S. mergers and acquisitions as of Wednesday has doubled year over year, as economic concerns subside and deal-makers scramble to get deals done in an election year, but middle-market transaction activity isn't panning out as some had hoped. 

  • March 06, 2024

    50 Lawmakers Urge FTC To Probe Oil And Gas Consolidations

    A group of 50 lawmakers on Wednesday urged the Federal Trade Commission to investigate a recent string of mergers and acquisitions in the oil industry, saying this "longstanding consolidation trend" threatens to reduce choice and competition across the supply chain, suppress wages and make gas at the pump more expensive.

  • March 06, 2024

    NTSB Chief Says Boeing Isn't Sharing Info In Blowout Probe

    The National Transportation Safety Board's chief told a Senate panel Wednesday that The Boeing Co. still hasn't provided information about the door plug that blew off a 737 Max 9 jet two months ago, fueling troubling new questions as Boeing faces multiple probes into its safety culture and quality control.

  • March 06, 2024

    Judge Won't Revisit Contempt Order In Gold Mine Control Suit

    A Colorado federal judge refused Tuesday to reconsider or amend his 2022 contempt order sanctioning mineral exploration company DynaResource in a decade-old arbitration dispute over control of a Mexican gold mine, finding that DynaResource's arguments are untimely and "at best" tangentially related to the arbitration award.

  • March 06, 2024

    PacifiCorp Must Pay $42.4M To Oregon Fire Victims, Jury Says

    A Portland jury said Tuesday that electric power company PacifiCorp must pay $42.4 million to compensate another 10 victims of devastating Labor Day fires that burned in Oregon in 2020, with thousands more class members awaiting potential trials.

  • March 06, 2024

    Red States Challenge EPA's Particulate Matter Standards

    A coalition of 24 Republican-led states filed a petition before the D.C. Circuit on Wednesday urging the court to upend the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recently announced final rule tightening federal standards for fine particulate matter pollution.

  • March 06, 2024

    Feds Pledge $72M For Tribes To Close Electrification Gaps

    U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland said the Biden administration is awarding $72 million in a first round of funding to help Native American tribes electrify more homes in their communities.

  • March 06, 2024

    3rd Circ. Bristles At Exxon Ignoring OSHA Whistleblower Order

    A Third Circuit panel on Wednesday seemed exasperated with ExxonMobil's refusal to reinstate two fired whistleblowers despite an Occupational Safety and Health Administration order to do so, repeatedly grilling the energy company's counsel to come up with a good reason for flouting the directive.

  • March 06, 2024

    Epic Tesla Fee Bid May Blaze Extraordinary Chancery Path

    An unprecedented $5 billion-plus stock-based fee award sought by class attorneys who recently short-circuited Tesla CEO Elon Musk's 12-step, $51 billion compensation package has set up an equally unprecedented test for Delaware Court of Chancery fee guidelines and a potential award one law expert described as "dynastic wealth."

  • March 06, 2024

    Power Co. Can't Escape Explosion Fraud Claim

    An infrastructure supply company can't toss a fraud claim brought by an industrial company's insurers in a suit seeking to recoup $18.7 million in damages for a manufacturing facility explosion, an Ohio federal court ruled, finding that the carriers can bring both a breach of contract claim and a fraud claim.

  • March 06, 2024

    DC Circ. Sticks By FERC In Nebraska Utility Charge Fight

    The D.C. Circuit stood by its early January decision backing the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's rejection of a Lincoln, Nebraska, public utility's proposal to recover costs from customers located in the same area as its generation and transmission source.

  • March 06, 2024

    Divided SEC Adopts Scaled-Back Climate Reporting Regs

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday adopted climate reporting standards that will require some of the nation's largest companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, and it was met almost immediately with a lawsuit despite the final rule scrapping a controversial proposal to mandate so-called Scope 3 disclosures.

  • March 06, 2024

    DLA Piper Adds Environmental Credit Atty To NY Energy Team

    DLA Piper has hired an energy attorney whose specialties include environmental credits, advising clients on energy regulatory matters and working with a range of carbon-specific investment structures, the firm announced Tuesday.

  • March 05, 2024

    DC Circ. Leery Of Challenges To Nuke Waste Storage Site

    A D.C. Circuit panel on Tuesday didn't appear convinced by challenges to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's approval of a temporary nuclear waste storage site in New Mexico.

  • March 05, 2024

    Suncor Says Doubts About Colo. Monitoring Deal 'Misplaced'

    Suncor Energy has urged a Colorado state judge to approve its settlement with Colorado environmental regulators over emissions monitoring around its refinery near Denver, arguing environmental groups have raised vague and "misplaced" concerns about the deal but offered no concrete objections.

  • March 05, 2024

    Oro Negro Bondholders Want Quinn Emanuel Sanctioned

    Bondholders in Mexican oil and gas company Perforadora Oro Negro asked a Florida judge on Tuesday to sanction Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP for continuing to represent the company's founders in a $30 million dispute despite a disqualification order.

  • March 05, 2024

    Tank Car Cos. Can Inspect Derailed Train Parts, Judge Says

    An Ohio federal magistrate judge said Tuesday that the National Transportation Safety Board must allow rail tank car owners facing claims in sprawling consolidated litigation to inspect crucial components from the Norfolk Southern train that derailed in East Palestine last year.

  • March 05, 2024

    Rail Giants Get Some Docs Kept Out Of Fuel Surcharge MDL

    A D.C. federal judge has kept more than two dozen key documents out of a long-running multidistrict litigation accusing the country's four largest railroad companies of a fuel surcharge price-fixing scheme while permitting at least portions of over a dozen others that didn't qualify for an exclusion afforded discussions about shared traffic.

  • March 05, 2024

    DC Circ. Nixes Big Tech Child Labor Suit

    The D.C. Circuit on Tuesday ruled that tech companies facing suit for using cobalt mined with child labor didn't share in a "venture" with the companies responsible for extracting the metal, upholding a district court decision to dismiss the suit.

  • March 05, 2024

    UPS, AT&T Can't Avoid ESG Proxy Proposals, But BofA Can

    U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission staff have indicated they won't let UPS and AT&T get out of including shareholder proposals on environmental and social matters from their upcoming proxy statements, while letting Bank of America exclude two ESG-related proposals.

  • March 05, 2024

    Gibson Dunn AI Leader On Weathering The AI Policy Blizzard

    Like a mountaineer leading a team through a snowstorm, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP's artificial intelligence co-chair Cassandra L. Gaedt-Sheckter is guiding companies developing and using artificial intelligence through a blizzard of new laws and regulations coming online in Europe and the U.S., saying that assessing AI risks is the North Star to mitigating them.

  • March 05, 2024

    Ex-Ill. Chief Justice Urged Leniency For Former Madigan Aide

    Former Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Kilbride and a sitting state appellate justice were among more than a hundred politicians, legislative staffers and state government employees who urged an Illinois federal judge to go light on former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan's longtime chief of staff ahead of his perjury sentencing, according to letters unsealed Tuesday.

Expert Analysis

  • FERC Actions Signal Concern Over Investors' Utility Stakes

    Author Photo

    Two recent orders and a notice of inquiry from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on the subject of whether large investors are asserting control of public utilities signal increasing regulatory scrutiny of the investment community's influence over the electric power industry, say attorneys at Day Pitney.

  • 3 Areas Of Focus In Congressional Crosshairs This Year

    Author Photo

    Companies must prepare for Congress to build on its 2023 oversight priorities this year, continuing its vigorous inquiries into Chinese company-related investments, workplace safety and labor relations issues, and generative artificial intelligence, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Protections May Exist For Cos. Affected By Red Sea Attacks

    Author Photo

    Companies whose ships or cargo have been affected by the evolving military conflict in the Red Sea, and the countries under whose flags those ships were traveling, may be able to seek redress through legal action against Yemen or Iran under certain international law mechanisms, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • What's On Tap For Public Corruption Prosecutions In 2024

    Author Photo

    All signs point toward another year of blockbuster public corruption prosecutions in 2024, revealing broader trends in enforcement and jurisprudence, and promising valuable lessons for defense strategy, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • Global Cartel Enforcement Looks Set To Intensify In 2024

    Author Photo

    The cartel enforcement winds may strengthen this year, with the U.S. Department of Justice, as well as regulators in other countries, placing a renewed focus on pursuing international cartels and more traditional, hard-core cartel conduct, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Series

    Baking Bread Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    After many years practicing law, and a few years baking bread, I have learned that there are a few keys to success in both endeavors, including the assembly of a nourishing and resilient culture, and the ability to learn from failure and exercise patience, says Rick Robinson at Reed Smith.

  • Federal Courts And AI Standing Orders: Safety Or Overkill?

    Author Photo

    Several district court judges have issued standing orders regulating the use of artificial intelligence in their courts, but courts should consider following ordinary notice and comment procedures before implementing sweeping mandates that could be unnecessarily burdensome and counterproductive, say attorneys at Curtis.

  • The 5 Most Important Bid Protest Decisions Of 2023

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at Bradley Arant discuss noteworthy 2023 bid protest decisions from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and U.S. Government Accountability Office, offering perspectives on standing, document production, agency deference, System for Award Management registration requirements and mentor-protégé joint venture proposal evaluations.

  • 7 E-Discovery Predictions For 2024 And Beyond

    Author Photo

    The legal and technical issues of e-discovery now affect virtually every lawsuit, and in the year to come, practitioners can expect practices and policies to evolve in a number of ways, from the expanded use of relevancy redactions to mandated information security provisions in protective orders, say attorneys at Littler.

  • Securities Class Actions Show No Signs of Slowing In 2024

    Author Photo

    Plaintiffs asserted securities class actions at elevated levels in 2023 — a sign that filings will remain high in the year ahead — as they switched gears to target companies that allegedly have failed to anticipate supply chain disruptions, persistent inflation, rising interest rates and other macroeconomic headwinds, say attorneys at Skadden.

  • Consider A Key Insurance Tool For Environmental M&A Deals

    Author Photo

    Transactional liability insurance can be a useful risk allocation tool for completing mergers and acquisitions in the renewable energy and climate and clean technology sectors, though policies must be structured carefully to achieve maximum coverage, say Joseph Castelluccio and Paul de Bernier at Mayer Brown.

  • ESG Concerns Can No Longer Be Ignored In 2024

    Author Photo

    While the long wait for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's ESG rule continues, government attention to regulations, increased litigation efforts and shareholder resolutions seeking transparency highlight the importance of placing an emphasis on ESG considerations, say attorneys at Wollmuth Maher.

  • 2 FCPA Settlements Illuminate Self-Disclosure, Disgorgement

    Author Photo

    Two of last year’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act settlements — with biomedical company Lifecore and mining company Corsa Coal — suggest that the government will be much more flexible in negotiating disgorgement amounts if an entity voluntarily self-discloses misconduct, say Michael Gilbert and Lucas Amodio at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How DOI Aims To Modernize Resource Damage Assessments

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Department of the Interior's recent proposal to redesign its Type A rule for conducting natural resource damage assessment and restoration activities could lead to a more streamlined, flexible assessment process that would benefit both natural resource trustees and potentially responsible parties, says Brian Ferrasci-O'Malley at Nossaman.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2024

    Author Photo

    Over the next year and beyond, litigation funding will continue to evolve in ways that affect attorneys and the larger litigation landscape, from the growth of a secondary market for funded claims, to rising interest rates restricting the availability of capital, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Energy archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!