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Energy
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May 02, 2024
Split 10th Circ. Spikes $17.3M Atty Fee Over Class Notice
A split Tenth Circuit panel has vacated for a second time a $17.3 million attorney fee award for reaching a $52 million class action settlement over gas well royalty payments, with the majority writing that the lower court erred by not requiring a new class notice regarding the revised fee bid.
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May 02, 2024
4th Circ. Finds Judge Appointment Legit In Black Lung Case
The Fourth Circuit ruled that an administrative law judge who presided over a black lung benefits case was properly reappointed by the U.S. Department of Labor, rejecting Dominion Coal Corp.'s contention that his seating violated the Constitution's appointments clause.
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May 02, 2024
Lloyd's Unit Gets Oil Well Repair Co.'s $4.5M Claim Tossed
A Texas federal court tossed an oil well repair company's claim seeking over $4.5 million in additional insured coverage for costs incurred from controlling a blown-out well, finding that the company doesn't have standing to bring an independent claim against the well owner's carrier.
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May 02, 2024
Husch Blackwell Gains Energy Ace From Locke Lord In Austin
Husch Blackwell LLP has strengthened its energy practice with a partner in Austin who has expertise in regulatory matters and who came aboard from Locke Lord LLP.
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May 02, 2024
FTC Clears $60B Exxon Deal With Pioneer Executive Ban
The Federal Trade Commission on Thursday cleared the way for the close of the $60 billion mega-merger between Exxon Mobil Corp. and Pioneer Natural Resources, subject to an agreement barring former Pioneer Natural Resources CEO Scott Sheffield from gaining a seat on Exxon's board.
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May 01, 2024
Bipartisan Reps. Introduce Bill To Trace Battery Supply Chains
Environmental advocacy groups including the Sierra Club, Earthworks and SAFE have thrown their support behind a new bill to promote traceability in battery supply chains, a measure aimed at weeding bad labor and environmental practices out of the supply chain.
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May 01, 2024
Colonial Pipeline Says Contractor Bungled $22M Ga. Project
A contractor hired to build a $22.4 million fuel terminal for Colonial Pipeline Co. in Georgia owes the company at least $600,000 because of missed deadlines, shoddy workmanship and failing to pay its subcontractors, a new suit alleges.
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May 01, 2024
9th Circ. Slams Door On Kids' Climate Case
The Ninth Circuit ordered an Oregon federal judge Wednesday to immediately dismiss a closely watched suit by young adults against the federal government over the effects of climate change, saying its earlier order to end the matter could not be brushed off.
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May 01, 2024
Crescent Petroleum Wins OK Of $2.75B Award
Iran's state-owned oil company cannot escape having to pay an arbitral award now worth more than $2.75 billion owed to Crescent Petroleum after spending some two years ignoring the Emirati oil company's enforcement lawsuit in Washington, D.C., a federal judge ruled on Tuesday.
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May 01, 2024
Oil Drilling Workers Urge High Court Not To Review PPE Suit
The Third Circuit's view that time putting on and taking off personal protective equipment becomes compensable if the gear is integral and indispensable to employees' work actually aligns with a Second Circuit's standard, oil rig workers told the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday.
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May 01, 2024
Fracking Waste Still Festering Near Ohio River, AG Says
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost urged a Belmont County judge Wednesday to find Austin Master Services in contempt for failing to adhere to the court's preliminary injunction requiring the company to clean up fracking waste stored at its recycling facility by April 17.
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May 01, 2024
Tribe Fires Back At Feds' Brief In Enbridge Pipeline Row
The Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians has called on the Seventh Circuit to reject in part the federal government's position in an appeal over the future of Enbridge Energy's controversial Line 5 oil pipeline.
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May 01, 2024
DC Circ. Torn Over FERC's San Francisco Power Order
D.C. Circuit judges were undecided as to what Congress intended when it grandfathered certain consumers into a power-carrying agreement between San Francisco and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. in 1992, with the company arguing Wednesday that a recent regulatory order would allow far more consumers into the deal than it was meant for.
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May 01, 2024
DLA Piper Adds Ex-Sidley Atty To New Funds Team
DLA Piper on Tuesday announced another addition to its newly formed stand-alone investment funds group, this time a former Sidley Austin LLP partner focused on advising private funds sponsors.
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May 01, 2024
Tax Credit Transfer Regs Show IRS Caution In Rulemaking
The IRS and Treasury's final rules on the sale and transfer of green energy credits maintained a strict reading of the statute while making few changes, a sign of caution by regulators amid judicial scrutiny of the government's rulemaking authority.
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May 01, 2024
Ex-Edison Energy GC, McDermott Atty Joins Troutman In LA
Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP is expanding its West Coast infrastructure team, announcing Tuesday it is bringing in a McDermott Will & Emery LLP emerging energy technologies expert who was previously general counsel with Edison Energy Group to be a partner in its Los Angeles office.
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May 01, 2024
PG&E, KKR In Exclusive Talks For Partial Sale Of Power Biz
Pacific Gas & Electric Corp. is in exclusive talks with private equity giant KKR to sell a minority interest in its subsidiary, Pacific Generation LLC, to KKR's infrastructure strategy in a deal that would reduce customer rates by more than $100 million over the next two decades.
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May 01, 2024
Simpson-Led Mosaic Selling $1.5B Stake In Saudi Mining JV
Tampa-based fertilizer producer The Mosaic Co. said it has agreed to sell its 25% stake in a phosphate production joint venture to Saudi Arabian mining firm Ma'aden for more than 111 million shares of Ma'aden worth about $1.5 billion.
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April 30, 2024
PolyMet Must Give Up More Info In Mining Land Swap Suit
A federal judge has declined to sanction a Minnesota mining company in a discovery challenge by the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa but ordered it to produce certain previously withheld information in the tribe's bid to undo a land swap for copper and nickel mining.
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April 30, 2024
Final Biden Enviro Review Regs Puts Onus On Agencies
The Biden administration on Tuesday finalized its second round of revisions to regulations governing federal agencies' environmental reviews, but how agencies weave the new guidelines into their project permitting processes will be where the regulatory rubber hits the road, experts say.
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April 30, 2024
7th Circ. Backs Costco's Win In Gas Price-Matching Feud
The Seventh Circuit on Tuesday upheld Costco's victory against a dozen Wisconsin gas stations that claimed the warehouse giant sold regular unleaded fuel below a statutory minimum markup price that allegedly caused a decline in revenue, finding no evidence showing that Costco's pricing practices caused the stations a single lost sale.
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April 30, 2024
3rd Circ. Preview: Kavanaugh Classmate Takes On HuffPost
The Third Circuit's May lineup will find the court weighing HuffPost's battle with an allegedly libeled former classmate of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and claims by consumers alleging they bought defective Bayer antifungal medicine.
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April 30, 2024
FTC Puts $26B Permian Basin Gas Deal Under Scrutiny
The Federal Trade Commission is taking an in-depth look at the proposed oil and gas merger between Diamondback Energy and Endeavor Energy Resources by issuing a second request for additional information about the deal, according to new securities filings.
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April 30, 2024
EPA, Sunoco Reach $2.4M Deal Over Ohio Oil Pipeline Spill
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state of Ohio have reached a more than $2.4 million deal with two pipeline companies over the discharge of approximately 450 barrels of crude oil into the Buckeye State's Oak Glen Nature Preserve more than 10 years ago.
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April 30, 2024
Pa. Schools Say Railcar Cos. Must Face Derailment Claims
Pennsylvania school districts have told a federal judge that railcar companies cannot evade allegations they negligently shipped toxic chemicals in retrofitted tank cars during last year's Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, saying the environmental and health harms in their communities can be tied to the companies' conduct.
Expert Analysis
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Series
ESG Around The World: South Africa
While South Africa has yet to mandate the reporting of nonfinancial and environmental, social, and corporate governance issues, policy documents and recent legislative developments are likely to have a material impact in the country's transition to a low-carbon economy and in meeting its international obligations, say Glynn Kent at Eversheds Sutherland.
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3 Power Rulings Change Outlook For Transmission Cos.
The cumulative effect of three December power cases that halted state actions that gave preference to incumbent transmission providers could level the playing field for independent developers, say Harvey Reiter and John McCaffrey at Stinson.
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4 Legal Ethics Considerations For The New Year
As attorneys and clients reset for a new year, now is a good time to take a step back and review some core ethical issues that attorneys should keep front of mind in 2024, including approaching generative artificial intelligence with caution and care, and avoiding pitfalls in outside counsel guidelines, say attorneys at HWG.
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Bribery Settlement Gives Insight On DOJ Policies
Chemical company Albemarle’s recent $218 million settlement with the government to resolve foreign bribery claims provides valuable data points for companies on the U.S. Department of Justice’s voluntary self-disclosure policy and its clawback pilot program, say Michael DeBernardis and Tiauna Mathieu at Hughes Hubbard.
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Environmental Justice: A 2023 Recap And 2024 Forecast
A 2023 executive order directing each federal agency to make environmental justice part of its mission, as well as the many lawsuits and enforcement actions last year, demonstrates that EJ will increasingly surface in all areas of law and regulation, from technically challenging to seemingly ordinary permitting and construction matters, say attorneys at King & Spalding.
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What The Law Firm Of The Future Will Look Like
As the legal landscape shifts, it’s become increasingly clear that the BigLaw business model must adapt in four key ways to remain viable, from fostering workplace flexibility to embracing technology, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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4 PR Pointers When Your Case Is In The News
Media coverage of new lawsuits exploded last year, demonstrating why defense attorneys should devise a public relations plan that complements their legal strategy, incorporating several objectives to balance ethical obligations and advocacy, say Nathan Burchfiel at Pinkston and Ryan June at Castañeda + Heidelman.
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Unpacking The Proposed Production Tax Credit Regulations
Recently proposed tax regulations for claiming the U.S. clean-energy manufacturers' production credit under Internal Revenue Code Section 45X are less stringent than many had feared but fail to define a fundamental eligibility requirement, say Casey August and Jared Sanders at Morgan Lewis.
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Opinion
What Insurers Gain When Litigating Coverage Denials
Lately, insurance companies have denied coverage for lawsuits alleging liability relating to the ordinary operations of highly regulated businesses, such as those in the pharmaceutical and energy sectors — demonstrating time and again how litigation can be a vehicle for carriers to mitigate their own costs, say attorneys at Reed Smith.
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After Headwinds, 2024 May See Offshore Wind Momentum
Despite skyrocketing raw material costs, conflicting state and federal policies, and other setbacks for the offshore wind sector in 2023, the industry appears poised for growth in the coming year, with improving economics, more flexible procurement procedures and increasing legislative support, say Emily Huggins Jones and Ben Cowan at Locke Lord.
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How State AGs Process And Prioritize Consumer Complaints
Recent state attorneys general actions illustrate how their offices triage, monitor and respond to consumer complaints — and why businesses need to be proactive in addressing these issues as they arise, say Meghan Stoppel and Hannah Cornett Land at Cozen O'Connor.
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10 Issues To Watch As ESG Remains Alive And Well In 2024
Practitioners and stakeholders should watch a number of key environmental, social and corporate governance issues in the new year, including court rulings and comprehensive research, as the data shows ESG is here to stay, says Heidi Friedman at Thompson Hine.
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Law Firm Strategies For Successfully Navigating 2024 Trends
Though law firms face the dual challenge of external and internal pressures as they enter 2024, firms willing to pivot will be able to stand out by adapting to stakeholder needs and reimagining their infrastructure, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Consultants.
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The Most-Read Legal Industry Law360 Guest Articles Of 2023
A range of legal industry topics drew readers' attention in Law360's Expert Analysis section this year, from associate retention strategies to ethical billing practices.
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Considerations for In-House Counsel Before Testing For PFAS
In 2024, federal and state agencies are expected to introduce a plethora of new rules regulating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, with private litigation sure to follow — but in-house counsel should first weigh the risks and benefits before companies proactively investigate their historical PFAS use, say attorneys at Stinson.