Environmental

  • September 10, 2024

    Buyer Says Waste Facility Co. Owes $450M Over Trashed Plan

    Energy and waste management firm Reworld Waste, a Covanta Energy successor, is facing a $450 million lawsuit from a Connecticut company alleging Reworld sabotaged its plan to develop an environmentally friendly trash incineration facility in the town of Wallingford.

  • September 10, 2024

    Prime Hydration Beats Most Beverage PFAS Claims, For Now

    A California federal judge on Monday declined to end a putative class action accusing Prime Hydration of misleadingly marketing its Grape Sports Drink as healthy when it contains so-called "forever chemicals," although she tossed most of the lawsuit's claims with leave to amend.

  • September 10, 2024

    2024's Top Rulings In Native American Law

    The U.S. Supreme Court this year has handed down rulings with huge price tags attached — from millions in healthcare reimbursement funding required for tribes to lending Florida a win that will garner it a new revenue stream — that are expected to have large implications for Native American sovereignty. Here, Law360 takes a look at some of the biggest decisions in Native American law from the first half of 2024.

  • September 10, 2024

    Keurig To Pay SEC $1.5M Over K-Cup Recyclability Claims

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday ordered Keurig Dr. Pepper to pay a $1.5 million penalty and refrain from filing inaccurate information in its annual reports to settle allegations that it inaccurately claimed that its K-Cup coffee and tea pods were effectively recyclable.

  • September 10, 2024

    Fulcrum BioEnergy Files For Ch. 11 In Delaware

    Fulcrum BioEnergy Inc., a company that endeavors to make sustainable aviation fuel, filed for Chapter 11 protection late Monday in Delaware, listing up to $500 million in debt.

  • September 10, 2024

    Ariz. Gov. Can Join Monument Suit, Tribes and Enviros Sit Out

    The state of Arizona can intervene in a fight over the Biden administration's creation of a national monument on an Indigenous site, but groups of tribes and conservation organizations aren't allowed in the suit, at least for now, a federal judge ruled Monday.

  • September 10, 2024

    Brookfield Pledges Over $1B To Ultra-Low Carbon E-Fuels Co.

    Brookfield will pump up to $1.05 billion into Infinium and its electrofuels platform, in what the asset management giant said Tuesday is its first direct sustainable aviation fuels investment.

  • September 10, 2024

    IRS Extends Tax Deadlines For NY, Conn. Storm Victims

    Victims of severe storms and flooding in New York and Connecticut will have more time to file some tax returns and make estimated payments, the Internal Revenue Service announced Tuesday.

  • September 10, 2024

    Biofuel Group Wants Renewable Fuel Redo At DC Circ.

    Growth Energy said a D.C. Circuit panel erred when it said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency should have exempted small petroleum refiners from renewable fuel blending requirements and held the biofuel trade group didn't have standing to challenge alternative compliance actions the agency later enacted.

  • September 10, 2024

    'Structuring Issue' Snarls TC Energy's CA$1B Pipeline Deal

    Canadian natural gas company TC Energy on Tuesday paused its planned CA$1 billion ($736.7 million) sale of a minority stake in a pipeline system and assets to an Indigenous-owned buyer, citing a "transaction structuring issue."

  • September 09, 2024

    DC Judge Won't Halt Colo. Trail Over Radiation Concerns

    A D.C. federal judge will allow a trail development project in Colorado's Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge to move forward, rejecting a preliminary injunction bid from environmental and public health groups that claimed federal regulators disregarded unsafe levels of radiation in the area when authorizing the project.

  • September 09, 2024

    Judge Won't End Mich. Dam Flooding Suit Before Discovery

    A Michigan judge said Monday it would be premature to free the state from liability for two dams' collapse before further discovery, telling government lawyers he would be reversed "in a nanosecond" if he ended the suit so soon.

  • September 09, 2024

    EPA Power Plant GHG Rule Is Unworkable, DC Circ. Told

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's push to curb greenhouse gas pollution from power plants imposes unrealistic carbon capture and sequestration requirements, jeopardizes power grid reliability and exceeds its Clean Air Act authority, two dozen states and a host of coal and utility groups told the D.C. Circuit on Friday.

  • September 09, 2024

    Investment Firm Can't Fell Timber Co.'s Carbon Offset Suit

    The North Carolina Business Court has trimmed a timber company's lawsuit accusing a forestland investment firm of overstating land's carbon offset value in a sale, but let most of the claims escape being felled, reasoning that the timber company's complaint alleged plausible accusations of contract violations.

  • September 09, 2024

    5th Circ. Lets BP Keep Deepwater Horizon Cleanup Suit Win

    The Fifth Circuit won't upend BP's win in a suit by a boat captain alleging he was injured while helping with the cleanup of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, finding the trial court rightly excluded his expert for failing to prove that exposure to the chemicals could have caused his claimed injuries.

  • September 09, 2024

    Red States, Industry Look To Sink EPA Vehicle Emissions Rule

    The federal government's rule requiring reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from cars, trucks and vans must be squashed because it favors electric vehicles in a way only Congress can do, 26 red states and a coalition of business groups have told the D.C. Circuit.

  • September 09, 2024

    FERC Botched Tenn. Pipeline Approval, Enviro Orgs Tell DC Circ.

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission relied on a botched climate change analysis to unlawfully approve a Tennessee pipeline project that will serve a Tennessee Valley Authority gas-fired power plant that is set to replace a coal-fired plant, environmentalists told the D.C. Circuit.

  • September 09, 2024

    Ohio Train Derailment Plaintiffs Seek Final OK Of $600M Deal

    Residents and others affected by the Norfolk Southern train derailment and toxic chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, last year are asking an Ohio federal court for final approval of a $600 million settlement, including a $162 million payout for their attorneys.

  • September 09, 2024

    Zeta MDL Judge Limits Talk Of Arnold & Itkin Billing 'Scheme'

    A Harris County judge said on Monday she would limit what questions a drilling rig owner could ask witnesses about where they received medical care during an upcoming trial amid allegations that attorneys for seamen injured while on the ship during Hurricane Zeta engaged in a scheme to inflate medical bills.

  • September 09, 2024

    Five Point Energy Clinches 4th Fund With $1.4B In Tow

    Sustainable infrastructure-focused private equity shop Five Point Energy LLC on Monday announced that it clinched its fourth fund above target after securing $1.4 billion from investors.

  • September 09, 2024

    EPA Enforcement Alert Issued For Illegal HFC Imports

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it is cracking down on illegal imports of hydrofluorocarbons, potent greenhouse gases that are used in refrigeration and air-conditioning and slated to be phased down.

  • September 06, 2024

    Texas Biz Court Will Be A Brave New World For Energy Cos.

    Energy companies gained a new forum to hash out their legal fights Sept. 1 when the Texas business court recently started hearing cases, but questions about the court and how it'll operate might give companies pause before they take the plunge. Here's what energy companies and energy attorneys should know as the new court gets up and running.

  • September 06, 2024

    Ex-CEO Of Defunct Solar Co. Seeks Sanctions In Fraud Suit

    The former CEO of a bankrupt solar energy firm filed a motion for sanctions Friday in Michigan federal court, alleging the plaintiffs' counsel misrepresented the ex-CEO's inability to produce information during a discovery meeting regarding claims he defrauded customers by selling faulty solar systems.

  • September 06, 2024

    Arkema Calls Timing 'Suspect' In Bid To Lift NJ PFAS Suit Stay

    Chemical company Arkema Inc. is arguing that if rival Solvay is allowed to sue it, the litigation could upend an impending settlement worth up to $108 million it negotiated with the state of New Jersey that would end claims over "forever chemical" contamination at a facility both companies owned.

  • September 06, 2024

    2nd Circ. Won't Revive Solar Cos.' National Grid Tax Suit

    The Second Circuit declined to revive one of two proposed class actions brought by solar companies against National Grid alleging it illegally charged them for taxes in an effort to dampen competition from renewables, finding on Friday that the district court properly determined it lacked subject matter jurisdiction.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.

  • Half-Truths Vs. Omissions: Slicing Justices' Macquarie Cake

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Macquarie v. Moab provides a road map for determining whether corporate reports that omit information should be considered misleading — and the court baked it into a dessert analogy that is key to understanding the guidelines, say Daniel Levy and Pavithra Kumar at Advanced Analytical Consulting Group.

  • Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity

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    The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • 3 Areas Of Enforcement Risk Facing The EV Industry

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    Companies in the EV manufacturing ecosystem are experiencing a boom in business, but with this boom comes increased regulatory and enforcement risks, from the corruption issues that have historically pervaded the extractive sector to newer risks posed by artificial intelligence, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • How Cos. Should Handle Research Org.'s Carcinogen Evals

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    In light of the International Agency of Research for Cancer's list of substances slated for review over the next five years, manufacturers of chemicals, pharmaceuticals and consumer products should monitor for potentially unbalanced determinations, which could stimulate litigation regarding potential exposure from products, say attorneys at Nelson Mullins.

  • Keeping Up With Carbon Capture Policy In The US And EU

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    Recent regulatory moves from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the European Commission in the carbon capture, sequestration and storage space are likely to further encourage the owners and operators of fossil fuel-fired power plants to make decisions on shutdowns or reconfiguration to meet the expanding requirements, say Inosi Nyatta and Silvia Brünjes at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • New State Climate Liability Laws: What Companies Must Know

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    New legislation in Vermont and New York creating liability and compliance obligations for businesses deemed responsible for climate change — as well as similar bills proposed in California, Massachusetts and Maryland — have far-reaching implications for companies, so it is vital to remain vigilant as these initiatives progress, say Gregory Berlin and Jeffrey Dintzer at Alston & Bird.

  • EU Investor-State Dispute Transparency Rules: Key Points

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    The European Union's recent vote to embrace greater transparency for investor-state arbitration will make managing newly public information more complex for all parties in a dispute — so it is important for stakeholders to understand the risks and opportunities involved, say Philip Hall, Tara Flores and Charles McKeon at Thorndon Partners.

  • Despite Calif. Delays, Climate Disclosure Rules Are Coming

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    Progress continues on state, federal and international climate disclosure regimes, making compliance a key concern for companies — but the timeline for implementation of California's disclosure laws remains unclear due to funding and timing disputes, says David Smith at Manatt Phelps.

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Intra-EU Enforcement Trends

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    Hungary recently declared a distinct stance on the European Court of Justice's 2021 ruling in Moldavia v. Komstroy on intra-EU arbitration under the Energy Charter Treaty, highlighting a critical divergence in the bloc on enforcing investment awards and the complexities of balancing regional uniformity with international obligations, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • Opinion

    Now More Than Ever, Lawyers Must Exhibit Professionalism

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    As society becomes increasingly fractured and workplace incivility is on the rise, attorneys must champion professionalism and lead by example, demonstrating how lawyers can respectfully disagree without being disagreeable, says Edward Casmere at Norton Rose.

  • What Happens After Hawaii Kids' Historic Climate Deal

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    Implications of the Hawaii Department of Transportation's first-of-its-kind settlement with youth plaintiffs over constitutional climate claims may be limited, but it could incite similar claims, says J. Michael Showalter and Robert Middleton at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Series

    Serving In The National Guard Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My ongoing military experience as a judge advocate general in the National Guard has shaped me as a person and a lawyer, teaching me the importance of embracing confidence, balance and teamwork in both my Army and civilian roles, says Danielle Aymond at Baker Donelson.

  • Big Business May Come To Rue The Post-Administrative State

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    Many have framed the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions overturning Chevron deference and extending the window to challenge regulations as big wins for big business, but sand in the gears of agency rulemaking may be a double-edged sword, creating prolonged uncertainty that impedes businesses’ ability to plan for the future, says Todd Baker at Columbia University.

  • Series

    After Chevron: A Sea Change For Maritime Sector

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    The shipping industry has often looked to the courts for key agency decisions affecting maritime interests, but after the U.S. Supreme Court's Loper Bright ruling, stakeholders may revisit important industry questions and coordinate to bring appropriate challenges and shape rulemaking, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

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