Environmental

  • August 14, 2026

    Data Center Backlash Fogs Finance Picture For New Projects

    How is the backlash against data centers — from public protests in red towns and blue cities to moratoriums on large projects to primary wins for anti-data center candidates — affecting lenders' approach? Here, Law360 takes a close look.

  • August 14, 2026

    Colo. Resident Says Energy Panel Dodged Open Meeting Law

    An advisory group created by the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission is barring the public from attending meetings and refusing to turn over public records, a Denver resident has claimed in Colorado state court.

  • August 14, 2026

    SEC Staff Halt Responses To Proxy Proposal Exclusion Bids

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Friday made permanent a previous decision to step back from responding to companies' bids to exclude shareholder proposals from their ballots, following comments from the agency's chairman that the most recent proxy season saw none of the "dire predictions" some had forecast after the retreat.

  • August 14, 2026

    Ex-Marathon Worker Says AI Caught Her Bosses' Gender Bias

    A Marathon Engineering environmental scientist has sued her former employer in New Jersey state court, alleging she was fired due to her gender, after an AI assistant that recorded her termination meeting sent her a transcript showing that one of her supervisors said he hoped to replace her with a "relatively strapping young man."

  • August 14, 2026

    Calif. Tribe Failed To Show Harm Over 40-Acre Land Transfer

    A California tribe can't block the U.S. Department of the Interior from transferring 40 acres into trust for a fellow tribe's casino project, a D.C. district court judge has determined, saying action on the contested land isn't imminent and there's no demonstrable irreparable harm.

  • August 14, 2026

    IRS Expands Carbon Capture Tax Credit's Safe Harbor

    A safe harbor for the carbon sequestration tax credit's reporting requirements will apply to a method that uses carbon oxide used as a tertiary injectant in qualified oil and gas extraction projects, the IRS announced Friday, expanding earlier guidance for the incentive.

  • August 14, 2026

    Trump Asks Justices To Raze Block On Ballroom Construction

    President Donald Trump asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to lift a ban on construction of a new White House ballroom, arguing a federal judge who ordered the work to stop overstepped his authority by vetoing national security officials' determinations that the ballroom is "vitally required." 

  • August 13, 2026

    Del. Water Supplier Sues 9 Cos. Over PFAS

    A Delaware water supplier hit nine companies with a suit in state court alleging that they released forever chemicals into the watersheds that supply water to tens of thousands of residents, seeking to recoup at least $34.6 million for the cost of ensuring safe drinking water.

  • August 13, 2026

    Calif. Judge OKs $57M Deal On Former Navy Site's Cleanup

    A California federal judge has approved a $57 million settlement between the U.S. government and Tetra Tech EC Inc., resolving claims that the company billed the Navy for radiation cleanup work at the former Hunters Point Naval Shipyard that it never performed.

  • August 13, 2026

    5th Circ. Nixes Fed Approval For Offshore Oil Export Port

    A Fifth Circuit panel overturned a license approval for a deepwater port off Texas, ruling that the Trump administration failed to properly consider how a pipeline serving the offshore crude oil export facility would intersect a pipeline for another approved port.

  • August 13, 2026

    Split 11th Circ. Backs IRS $1M Value For Contested Easement

    A split Eleventh Circuit panel affirmed a decision to slash three Georgia landowners' conservation easement value from $18 million to $1 million Thursday, saying the U.S. Tax Court didn't need to determine the property's best use because the parties already agreed on that use.

  • August 13, 2026

    DHS Defends Building New ICE Facility In Silicon Valley

    The federal government fired back in California federal court Wednesday against a bid by California and Santa Clara County to block a planned ICE office and temporary holding facility in Silicon Valley, arguing that the project's alleged environmental, health and safety impacts are speculative and unsupported.

  • August 13, 2026

    Arizona, Tribes Sign Deal To Offset Coal Economy Losses

    Arizona, the Hopi Tribe and the Navajo Nation have signed an agreement that aims to boost economic growth for tribal communities that lost thousands of jobs and millions in revenue after major coal mining companies stopped or scaled back operations in the Four Corners region.

  • August 13, 2026

    Groups Say Shuttered Fla. Detention Center Threatens Wildlife

    Environmental groups have accused wildlife officials of polluting protected land through an immigrant detention center in the Everglades, alleging in an updated complaint filed in Florida federal court that the now-shuttered site continues to threaten endangered species in the area.

  • August 13, 2026

    Fla. Law Firm Cost Bank's $134M BP Oil Spill Claim, Suit Says

    An Ohio bank holding company has sued a Florida law firm in Ohio federal court for more than $134 million in damages, alleging the firm missed key filing deadlines while representing the bank in litigation tied to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, costing the bank its chance to recover millions in losses.

  • August 13, 2026

    Wyo. Archaeologists Challenge Reach Of Native Graves Rule

    The Wyoming Association of Professional Archaeologists is asking a district court to block the transfer of six Indigenous collections to the federal government, arguing that an update to a law designed to protect Native American burial sites goes beyond what Congress intended.

  • August 13, 2026

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: Judges Retire, HCA Suit Heads To Trial

    The North Carolina Business Court dropped a host of heavy-hitting opinions in July ahead of two judicial retirements and a new chief judge rising in the ranks.

  • August 12, 2026

    11th Circ. Backs EPA, Fertilizer Co. In 'Radioactive' Road Case

    The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday rejected an environmental group's challenge to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision allowing the construction of a private road with a radioactive byproduct from fertilizer production, finding EPA regulations don't categorically bar such use.

  • August 12, 2026

    UMich Law Professor's Pro Bono Work Not FOIA Fodder

    The University of Michigan doesn't have to turn over the emails a law professor sent as part of her environmental pro bono work in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, after Michigan state court ruled that the emails don't count as public records under the law.

  • August 12, 2026

    Wash. County Wants Out Of Burial Site Development Suit

    Whatcom County, Washington, has asked a federal court to dismiss the sole claim against it in a lawsuit from the Lummi Nation over broadband construction that allegedly disturbed ancestral remains, arguing that the county cannot be held liable for how it reviewed permits for the projects.

  • August 12, 2026

    1st Circ. Urged Not To Revive Puerto Rico Climate RICO Suit

    Fossil fuel companies have urged the First Circuit to uphold the dismissal of a racketeering and antitrust lawsuit from several Puerto Rico municipalities claiming the companies misrepresented the climate dangers of fossil fuel products in causing a pair of hurricanes.

  • August 12, 2026

    Insurer Says Property Owner's Hail Claim Lacks Proof

    An insurer says a property owner's request that a Tennessee federal court declare that its building was damaged in a "significant weather event" improperly asks the court to rule on competing expert opinions on the storm's severity, rather than any legal claims in the $10 million coverage dispute.

  • August 12, 2026

    Ill. Panel Keeps Toxic Tort Jurisdiction Law Intact

    An Illinois appellate panel on Tuesday refused to revive a Republican-led challenge to a sweeping state law expanding the state's jurisdictional reach in toxic tort cases, saying it was barred from reviewing the Legislature's compliance with its own internal procedures but renewing concerns about being required to "turn a blind eye" to lawmakers' potential constitutional violations.

  • August 12, 2026

    Clean Harbors Snags EnviroServe In $470M Cash Deal

    Environmental and industrial services provider Clean Harbors Inc., led by Davis Malm & D'Agostine PC, on Wednesday unveiled plans to acquire Latham & Watkins LLP-advised environmental and waste management services company EnviroServe from an affiliate of One Rock Capital Partners in a $470 million cash deal.

  • August 12, 2026

    Army Corps OKs Enbridge Tunnel Amid Line 5 Permit Fight

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a permit Wednesday allowing Enbridge Energy LP to tunnel beneath four miles of the Straits of Mackinac for its Line 5 oil pipeline, and environmental and tribal groups fighting the project say a recent Michigan Supreme Court decision bars the construction.

Expert Analysis

  • Preparing For Next Congress With Eye On Investigation Risk

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    Rod Rosenstein, Brian Whisler and Bruce Linskens at Baker McKenzie offer advice for organizations seeking to build a proactive response plan to potential congressional oversight as the election looms.

  • Solar's Momentum At Mid-2026 Will Help It Overcome Snags

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    The rapid expansion of U.S. solar development in the first half of 2026 is likely to continue its pace, even amid ongoing shifts in federal trade policy and supply chain regulations, obstacles to permitting reform, and an increasing divide between states enacting policies to encourage or stymie project development, say attorneys at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • New Pipeline Repair Rules Shift Burden To Engineer Judgment

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    A proposal from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration to allow operators more flexibility to make analysis-informed repair choices, rather than hew to long-standing prescriptive criteria, could make documenting the engineer’s decision-making process as important to compliance as the ultimate repair performed, says Ahuva Battams at Beatty & Wozniak.

  • Series

    Being A Magician Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I've developed as a lifelong magician have translated directly into tangible benefits in the courtroom because performing magic and trying cases both live at the intersection of psychology, storytelling, timing and disciplined rehearsal, says Mark Dombroff at Fox Rothschild.

  • Reel Justice: 'Obsession' And The Importance Of Precision

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    In “Obsession,” the main character’s failure to define the limits of his wish results in an unexpectedly horrifying outcome, highlighting for attorneys why careful word choice is essential not only in briefs, but also in charging decisions, statutory interpretation and all stages of criminal litigation, says Veronica Finkelstein at Widener-Delaware Law.

  • $100M Clean Air Act Ruling Transforms Parent Co. Liability

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    A Michigan federal court's recent decision in U.S. v. EES Coke Battery, holding a company liable for Clean Air Act violations at a plant owned by its subsidiary, weakens the legal shield between businesses and their corporate parents, and has started a legal battle that may last for years, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

  • Series

    Bass Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Landing a trophy striped bass and closing a big deal both require cultivating the patience to finesse — not force — your way to desired outcomes, changing course when your old approach isn’t working and learning from the ones that got away, says Jon Ruiss at Alston & Bird.

  • PacifiCorp Ruling Shows Limits Of Aggregate Wildfire Loss Models

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    An Oregon appeals court's recent decision in James v. PacifiCorp illustrates that in litigation involving multiple wildfires, materially different causation theories, and evidence tied to particular fires and locations, a single undifferentiated damages model is vulnerable to attack, say Paige Van Oosten and Jason Kim at Hunton and Kevin Cahill at FTI Consulting.

  • Roundup

    The Most Talked-About Supreme Court Decisions Of 2026

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    This term, 11 U.S. Supreme Court decisions quickly became hot topics among Law360's guest writers.

  • Fighting The Evidentiary Risks Of Deepfakes In Court

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    Though courts and federal rules are only slowly developing frameworks for assessing digital evidence that could have been created or generated by artificial intelligence, litigators should understand what steps they'll likely need to take to successfully challenge potentially deepfaked exhibits — and fight questions about the authenticity of their own, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Proof, Not Just Timing, Will Decide Clean Energy Credits

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    For wind and solar projects that sprinted to begin construction before the accelerated placed-in-service deadline of July 4, project owners must now assemble and maintain documentation to qualify the project and defend against a potential clean energy credit audit, says Peter Lowy at Nelson Mullins.

  • What Durnell Ruling Means For Mo. Roundup Settlement

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    While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Monsanto v. Durnell forecloses the failure-to-warn theory that carried most of the claims against Monsanto in a pending class action in Missouri state court, it leaves untouched the question of whether the class was assembled merely to contain the defendant's liability, says attorney Gregg Goldfarb.

  • Generative AI Is Reshaping The Defense Of Complex Litigation

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    Generative artificial intelligence is lowering the barriers to filing new cases, meaning that the defense bar must respond to an increased wave of litigation — but generative AI is also helping defense teams with legal research and drafting, fact witness development, and expert witness strategy, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Why SEC Climate Rule Rescission Wouldn't End Disclosure

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    If the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent proposal to rescind its 2024 climate-related disclosure rules is adopted, companies would no longer need to prepare for the rules' specific governance, emissions, attestation, financial statement and tagging requirements, but several important constraints would remain, say attorneys at Venable.

  • High Court's FCC Fine Ruling Reframes Agency Enforcement

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T sweeps aside uncertainty about what kinds of regulatory enforcement trigger a Seventh Amendment right, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

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