Environmental

  • October 17, 2025

    California AG Sues Plastic Bag Makers Over Recycling Claims

    California's attorney general on Friday sued three plastic bag manufacturers in state court for allegedly selling nonrecyclable plastic bags despite claiming to meet the Golden State's recyclability standards, but said four other producers agreed to stop sales in the state as part of a settlement resolving similar allegations.

  • October 17, 2025

    Colorado Landowners Win Class Cert. In Oil Well Cleanup Suit

    Colorado landowners accusing the oil and gas company HRM Resources LLC of transferring oil and gas well rights to a now-defunct smaller company in an attempt to avoid cleanup obligations won class certification in Colorado federal court Friday.

  • October 17, 2025

    8th Circ. Partially Reverses $14.6M Warehouse Damage Award

    An Arkansas federal court correctly determined that a manufacturer of vacuum products breached its lease with a warehouse owner by failing to purchase insurance coverage equal to the warehouse property's "full replacement cost," the Eighth Circuit ruled Friday, though partially reversing the court's nearly $14.6 million damages award.

  • October 17, 2025

    Fla. College Students And Staff Sue Over PFAS Exposure

    Floridians who attend, work at or live near the College of Central Florida say that their drinking water has been contaminated with so-called forever chemicals leached from firefighting foam used on campus, according to a suit against 3M and others recently removed to federal court.

  • October 17, 2025

    Texas Appeals Court Clears River Authority Of Flood Claim

    A Texas appeals court found that the San Jacinto River Authority had governmental immunity when it decided to release water from its Lake Conroe reservoir during a hurricane, saying it took a good faith action even though the decision damaged some properties.

  • October 17, 2025

    Green Biz Group Says Enbridge Exaggerating Pipeline Stakes

    An environmental advocacy group made up of Great Lakes businesses told the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday that Enbridge Energy LP and its supporters are overstating claims that shutting down a Michigan segment of one of its petroleum pipelines will threaten energy security.

  • October 17, 2025

    Congressional Dems Push For No Layoffs At Interior And EPA

    Democratic lawmakers are demanding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of the Interior halt any plans to reduce staff as the federal government shutdown continues into its third week.

  • October 17, 2025

    Federal Courts To Scale Back Operations Amid Shutdown

    The federal court system has run out of money and will scale back operations beginning Monday as a result of the ongoing government shutdown, possibly leading to case delays.

  • October 17, 2025

    Native Policy Roundup: $128M Protects Tribal, Farm Lands

    Despite the U.S. government moving into its third week of a shutdown, state and federal lawmakers continue to introduce — and approve — legislation toward advancing Native American rights and sovereignty. Law360 examines some of the state, federal and tribal legislation and policies introduced in the past week

  • October 17, 2025

    UN Shipping Agency Delays Carbon Price Opposed By US

    The United Nations' shipping agency agreed Friday to postpone for one year its plan to introduce a global carbon price, which the U.S. government opposes, having called it a "global carbon tax."

  • October 17, 2025

    Taxation With Representation: Latham, Kirkland, Wachtell

    In this week's Taxation With Representation, the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership, MGX, and BlackRock's Global Infrastructure Partners acquire Aligned Data Centers from Macquarie Asset Management and co-investors; Rayonier Inc. and PotlatchDeltic Corp. merge to create a timber and wood products giant; and a Lone Star Funds affiliate acquires industrial processing equipment provider Hillenbrand Inc.

  • October 16, 2025

    Farmers Urge Wash. Justices To Void Fuel Exemption Regs

    A Washington Supreme Court justice suggested Thursday that the state's framework for an exemption under its greenhouse gas "cap-and-invest" program has fallen short of lawmakers' express goal of ensuring farmers have access to surcharge-free fuel for agricultural purposes.

  • October 16, 2025

    'Good Riddance': Feds Ax Big-Bank Climate Risk Guidance

    Federal regulators Thursday moved to scrap a set of Biden-era "principles" that sought to ensure large banks can manage potential balance-sheet risks from climate change, an ending that one Federal Reserve official greeted with a sharp send-off.

  • October 16, 2025

    MTA Wants Truckers' Congestion Pricing Suit Tossed

    New York officials have told a Manhattan federal judge that an amended lawsuit alleging congestion pricing tolls wrongfully discriminate against commercial truckers still doesn't offer any new facts suggesting the tolls are unreasonable or violate federal law, so the lawsuit should be tossed for good.

  • October 16, 2025

    Judge Asked To Ground Military Training Flight Plan In Mich.

    A conservation group has asked a federal judge to halt a proposed expansion of Air National Guard training flights in Michigan, saying the low-level flights will disturb a treasured destination for trout fishing.

  • October 16, 2025

    States Battle Trump Admin To Recover Solar Program Funds

    Attorneys general from across the country are suing the Trump administration for allegedly violating the Constitution and federal law by canceling a $7 billion program providing solar equipment to low-income households.

  • October 16, 2025

    Electric Aircraft Startup Beta Technologies Targets $750M IPO

    Electric aircraft and propulsion system manufacturer Beta Technologies has unveiled plans for an estimated $750 million initial public offering, with Kirkland & Ellis LLP advising the company and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP advising the underwriters.

  • October 16, 2025

    Trump Taps V&E's Swett As New FERC Chair

    President Donald Trump will appoint Vinson & Elkins LLP energy regulatory counsel Laura Swett as chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the White House confirmed to Law360 Thursday.

  • October 16, 2025

    ADNOC's Covestro Buy To Get EU Nod, Plus More Rumors

    Abu Dhabi oil giant ADNOC is expected to get a stamp of approval from European regulators for its €14.7 takeover of German chemicals company Covestro; Spanish grid operator Enagas is debating buying a minority stake in French gas operator Terega; and private equity giant Apollo has submitted another bid to acquire pizza chain Papa John's.

  • October 15, 2025

    11th Circ. Sides With Insurer In Fla. Gas Station Pollution Fight

    An insurer for an owner and operator of Florida gas stations owes no coverage for pollution costs stemming from an underground fuel tank leak, the Eleventh Circuit ruled Wednesday, finding the owner failed to properly notify its insurer of a "pollution condition" that could result in an insurance claim.

  • October 15, 2025

    Meat Industry Fights To Defend Nix Of Slaughterhouse Rules

    A meat and poultry industry group has told the Ninth Circuit it opposes green groups' challenge to the federal government's decision to rescind a Biden-era proposal that would have imposed stricter water discharge regulations on slaughtering, processing and rendering facilities.

  • October 15, 2025

    Judge Sinks Youths' Suit Challenging Trump Energy Orders

    A Montana federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a suit by youths seeking to undo President Donald Trump's energy-related emergency orders, saying that it's beyond the power of federal courts to dictate U.S. environmental and energy policy.

  • October 15, 2025

    FERC Ignored La. LNG Terminal's Enviro Harms, DC Circ. Told

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shirked its obligation to evaluate the potential harms of a massive liquefied natural gas export terminal in Louisiana before approving its construction, environmental groups and fishermen have told the D.C. Circuit.

  • October 15, 2025

    Ga. Justices Stand By Holding That Runoff Fees Aren't Taxes

    The Supreme Court of Georgia has for the second time ruled that a landowner can't use a constitutional challenge to get out of paying stormwater utility bills to its local government, declining Wednesday to overturn a decade-plus precedent that ruled the county was enforcing a fee rather than a tax.

  • October 15, 2025

    Hertz Must Face Investors' Claims Over EV Statements

    Car rental giant Hertz Global Holdings Inc. can't completely shed securities fraud claims over its statements that it was seeing strong demand for electric cars that artificially boosted stock prices, a Florida federal judge has ruled, while also dismissing other claims in the proposed class action.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Learning From Failure

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    While law school often focuses on the importance of precision, correctness and perfection, mistakes are inevitable in real-world practice — but failure is not the opposite of progress, and real talent comes from the ability to recover, rethink and reshape, says Brooke Pauley at Tucker Ellis.

  • How Courts Are Addressing The Use Of AI In Discovery

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    In recent months, several courts have issued opinions on handling discovery issues involving artificial intelligence, which collectively offer useful insights on integrating AI into discovery and protecting work product in connection with AI prompts and outputs, says Philip Favro at Favro Law.

  • How Justices' Ruling On NEPA Reviews Is Playing Out

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    Since the U.S. Supreme Court's May decision in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, narrowing the scope of agencies' required reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act, the effects of the ruling are starting to become visible in the actions of lower courts and the agencies themselves, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.

  • Deep-Sea Mining Outlook Murky, But May Be Getting Clearer

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    U.S. companies interested in accessing deep-sea mineral resources face uncertainty over new federal regulations and how U.S. policy may interact with pending international agreements — but a Trump administration executive order and provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act should help bring clarity, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From ATF Director To BigLaw

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    As a two-time boomerang partner, returning to BigLaw after stints as a U.S. attorney and the director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, people ask me how I know when to move on, but there’s no single answer — just clearly set your priorities, says Steven Dettelbach at BakerHostetler.

  • Tips For US Investors Eyeing Middle East Data Centers

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    While Middle East data center investment presents a compelling opportunity in light of renewed U.S.-Gulf cooperation on artificial intelligence and critical technologies, these projects require a nuanced understanding of regional legal and regulatory regimes, says Haykel Hajjaji at Covington.

  • New DOJ Penalty Policy Could Spell Trouble For Cos.

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    In light of the U.S. Department of Justice’s recently published guidance making victim relief a core condition of coordinated resolution crediting, companies facing parallel investigations must carefully calibrate their negotiation strategies to minimize the risk of duplicative penalties, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Clean Energy Tax Changes Cut Timelines, Add Red Tape

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    With its dramatic changes to energy tax credits, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will reshape project financing and investment planning — and wind and solar developers, especially those in the early stages of projects, face stricter timelines and heightened compliance challenges, says Dan Ruth at Balch & Bingham.

  • High Court Cert Spotlights Varying Tests For Federal Removal

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    A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to review Chevron v. Plaquemines Parish, a case involving the federal officer removal statute, highlights three other recent circuit court decisions raising federal removal questions, and serves as a reminder that defendants are the masters of removal actions, says Varun Aery at Hollingsworth.

  • Trump Air Emissions Carveouts Cloud The Regulatory Picture

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    President Donald Trump's new proclamations temporarily exempting key U.S. industries from air toxics standards, issued under a narrow, rarely-used provision of the Clean Air Act, will likely lead to legal challenges and tighter standards in some states, contributing to further regulatory uncertainty, say attorneys at GableGotwals.

  • How Property Insurers Serve As Climate Change Harbingers

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    Thomas Dawson at McDermott discusses the role that U.S. property insurers may play in identifying and assessing climate risk, as well as in financing climate change adaptation projects, in light of global warming and shifting geopolitical realities.

  • Series

    Playing Baseball Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing baseball in college, and now Wiffle ball in a local league, has taught me that teamwork, mental endurance and emotional intelligence are not only important to success in the sport, but also to success as a trial attorney, says Kevan Dorsey at Swift Currie.

  • Managing Risks As State AGs Seek To Fill Enforcement Gap

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    Given an unprecedented surge in state attorney general activity resulting from significant shifts in federal enforcement priorities, companies must consider tailored strategies for navigating the ever-evolving risk landscape, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • A Deep Dive Into 14 Nixed Gensler-Era SEC Rule Proposals

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last month formally withdrew 14 notices of proposed rulemaking, including several significant and widely criticized proposals that had been issued under former Chair Gary Gensler's leadership, signaling a clear and definitive shift away from the previous administration, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Skillful Persuasion

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    In many ways, law school teaches us how to argue, but when the ultimate goal is to get your client what they want, being persuasive through preparation and humility is the more likely key to success, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

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