Environmental

  • July 01, 2026

    DC Judge Blocks More USDA Grant Terminations

    A D.C. federal court has preliminarily reinstated U.S. Department of Agriculture grants totaling roughly $127 million under a program aimed at helping underserved farmers, finding the department's grant terminations likely flouted Congress' priorities under two Biden-era laws.

  • July 01, 2026

    Calif. Tribe Seeks To Block July 8 Wild Horse Roundup

    A California tribe is looking to block the U.S. Department of the Interior from removing more than 600 wild horses via helicopter from a protected habitat starting July 8, arguing that the federal government has been on notice for nearly four decades that aboriginal interests are implicated by the territory's management activities.

  • July 01, 2026

    EV Battery Workers Say Ford Is Joint Employer

    Battery plant workers have told a Michigan federal court that Ford Motor Co. is their joint employer and bears responsibility for unpaid wage claims at an electric vehicle battery plant, pushing back against the automaker's bid to escape the lawsuit.

  • June 30, 2026

    ConocoPhillips Again Seeks To Exit Wash. Tribal Climate Torts

    ConocoPhillips is urging a Washington state judge to free it from a pair of Native American tribes' lawsuits accusing major oil companies of a decades-long campaign to downplay the climate risks of fossil fuels, contending Monday that the tribes have still failed to satisfy jurisdictional requirements in their revised complaints.

  • June 30, 2026

    2nd Circ. Backs NY Gas Appliance Ban In Split With 9th Circ.

    New York City and the Empire State can enforce their laws effectively banning fossil-fuel appliances in new buildings, the Second Circuit ruled Tuesday, splitting from the Ninth Circuit in rejecting trade groups and unions' arguments that the statutes run afoul of federal law.

  • June 30, 2026

    Gibson Dunn, White & Case Lead KKR's $4.2B EDF Biz Deal

    Private equity firm KKR & Co., represented by Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP, announced Tuesday a $4.2 billion agreement to acquire the North America renewable power business operated by EDF Group, advised by White & Case LLP.

  • June 30, 2026

    Texas Court Sends 4 Asbestos Suits Out Of MDL Court

    A Texas appeals court on Tuesday found that multiple families of people who died following diagnoses of asbestos-related malignancies can remand their cases back to the courts they initially filed in, saying the multidistrict litigation rules do not apply to their cases.

  • June 30, 2026

    DOJ's $450M PFAS Deal Win For Chemours

    The $450 million settlement between the federal government and Chemours Co. over its "forever chemicals" is a major win for the manufacturer, but the relatively small payout means that two of the three impacted states are now being watched for any objections, especially the one that was caught by surprise by last week's announcement.

  • June 30, 2026

    Rail Group Says DC Train Car 'Border Fee' Rule Preempted

    The nation's largest railroad trade group told a federal judge on Monday that Washington, D.C.'s 60-cent fee for every railcar entering the district violates the dormant commerce clause, federal law and the city's own Administrative Procedure Act.

  • June 30, 2026

    Eversource, Avangrid Say Conn. Grid Law Is Unconstitutional

    Eversource Energy and Avangrid have accused Connecticut officials of violating the U.S. Constitution's supremacy, takings and contracts clauses by enacting a 2025 state law that forces utilities to participate in a regional power grid, arguing the state cannot meddle with their two-decade-old, federally approved voluntary memberships.

  • June 30, 2026

    FERC Future Fuzzy After High Court's Agency Firings Ruling

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission faces an uncertain future following the U.S. Supreme Court's blockbuster ruling that presidents have unlimited authority to fire members of independent agencies, which creates new risks for an energy industry that's used to regulatory continuity at FERC.

  • June 30, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Rejects Canal Contractor's $4M Adjustment Claim

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday declined to grant a construction company's bid for a nearly $4 million adjustment under a U.S. Army flood control contract at a Louisiana canal after encountering construction issues, finding the solicitation did not mislead the company.

  • June 30, 2026

    Catholic Group's Land Use Case Headed Back To 6th Circ.

    A Michigan federal judge on Monday refused to reconsider her denial of partial summary judgment for Catholic Healthcare International in its land use suit over Genoa Township's denial of a permit for a religious campus but certified the denial for immediate interlocutory appeal to the Sixth Circuit in an effort to accelerate resolution of the long-running litigation.

  • June 30, 2026

    DOJ Says Mich. Climate Antitrust Claims Are Barred

    The U.S. Department of Justice has weighed in on Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's antitrust lawsuit against some of the world's largest oil companies, arguing much of the state's case is legally barred because Michigan is improperly attempting to regulate climate change through state antitrust law. 

  • June 30, 2026

    Ga. Justices Take Up $1.5M Blue Ridge Runoff Dispute

    Georgia's Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether an appeals court was right to dismiss a case involving a property owner claiming a water runoff issue from the city of Blue Ridge resulted in $1.5 million in property damage.

  • June 30, 2026

    SpaceX, Feds Say Texas Is Proper Venue For Land Swap Suit

    A D.C. federal court on Tuesday ordered expedited briefing over motions by SpaceX and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seeking to transfer to the Southern District of Texas a lawsuit from environmental groups challenging their land-exchange deal there.

  • June 30, 2026

    Tax Court Withheld Evidence In Easement Row, 10th Circ. Told

    The U.S. Tax Court's improper withholding of an appraiser report as evidence resulted in a flawed opinion last year that substantially slashed the value of a North Carolina conservation easement donation by 94%, the partnership donor told the Tenth Circuit.

  • June 30, 2026

    Gordon Rees Adds 8 Partners In Northern California

    Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP has expanded its offices in Northern California with eight new partners who have expertise in multiple practice areas, a firm spokesperson told Law360 Pulse on Tuesday.

  • June 30, 2026

    ICE Scraps Plan For NJ Immigrant Detention Center

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have decided to cancel plans to convert a New Jersey warehouse into a 1,500-bed immigrant detention center, according to a joint status report filed in federal court, saying the property will instead be sold.

  • June 30, 2026

    High Court Sends 3 Roundup Cases Back After Monsanto Win

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday sent back several cases over claims that Bayer unit Monsanto Co.'s Roundup weed killer causes cancer, after the court last week delivered its ruling that state-based claims about a failure to warn on the weedkiller's labeling are barred by federal law.

  • June 29, 2026

    Volatility May Follow As Justices Make Agency Firings Easier​​​​​​​

    The policies and enforcement priorities of federal agencies may fluctuate more rapidly based on who is president, as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court's Monday decision finding that presidents have unlimited authority to fire members of independent agencies, experts told Law360.

  • June 29, 2026

    Ore. Top Court Takes PacifiCorp Case As Judge Won't Recuse

    The Oregon Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal of a decision overturning PacifiCorp's classwide liability for wildfire damages affecting about 2,000 property owners, days after an appeals judge who did work for the utility in private practice declined to recuse herself.

  • June 29, 2026

    3rd Circ. Preview: DuPont Pensions, Detainees' Court Access

    An appeal testing the limits of ERISA fiduciary liability goes before the Third Circuit in July when DuPont and Corteva seek to overturn a district court ruling that a corporate spinoff damaged employees' retirement benefits. The court will also hear argument on whether heavy equipment giant Caterpillar forced a competitor out of business by pressuring a vendor. Here are some highlights from the court's July calendar.

  • June 29, 2026

    Judge Voids DOT Freeze On NY-NJ Gateway Tunnel Funds

    A Manhattan federal judge on Monday barred the Trump administration from freezing funds for New York and New Jersey's $16 billion rehabilitation of aging commuter train tunnels under the Hudson River, saying the administration's unilateral cancellation of federally obligated grant funds was unlawful.

  • June 29, 2026

    Nokia Sues US Over $3 Billion Superfund Cleanup Bill

    Nokia on Monday claimed the federal government wrongly left it on the hook for a disproportionate share of the massive Superfund cleanup of the New Jersey's lower Passaic River in a new lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Judges On AI: How Courts Can Boost Access To Justice

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    Arizona Court of Appeals Judge Samuel A. Thumma writes that generative artificial intelligence tools offer a profound opportunity to enhance access to justice and engender public confidence in courts’ use of technology, and judges can seize this opportunity in five key ways.

  • Opinion

    The Case For Emulating, Not Dividing, The Ninth Circuit

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    Champions for improved judicial administration should reject the unfounded criticisms driving recent Senate proposals to divide the Ninth Circuit and instead seek to replicate the court's unique strengths and successes, says Ninth Circuit Judge J. Clifford Wallace.

  • Montana Ruling Reaffirms Record-Based Enviro Analyses

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    A Montana federal court's recent decision in Center for Biological Diversity v. U.S. Forest Service, vacating permits for logging near Yellowstone National Park, is a reminder that, despite attempts to pare back National Environmental Policy Act reviews, agencies must still properly complete such reviews before projects are approved, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • How Rule 16.1 Streamlines And Validates Mass Tort Litigation

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    The new Rule 16.1 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure not only serves a practical purpose by endorsing early, structured case management and dispositive motion practice in multidistrict litigation, but also explicitly affirms the importance of MDL practice in the justice system, says Rocco Strangio at Milestone.

  • Series

    Muay Thai Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Muay Thai kickboxing has taught me that in order to win, one must stick to one's game plan and adapt under pressure, just as when facing challenges by opposing counsel or judges, says Mark Schork at Feldman Shepherd.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Intentional Career-Building

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    A successful legal career is built through intention: understanding expectations, assessing strengths honestly and proactively seeking opportunities to grow and cultivating relationships that support your development, say Erika Drous and Hillary Mann at Morrison Foerster.

  • Key Trends In PFAS Regulation And Litigation For 2026

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    As 2026 begins, the legal and regulatory outlook for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances is defined less by sweeping federal initiatives and more by incremental adjustments, judicial guardrails and state-driven regulations — an environment in which proactive risk management and close monitoring of policy developments will be essential, say attorneys at MG+M.

  • Justices' Separation-Of-Powers Revamp May Hit States Next

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 decision in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy quietly laid the groundwork for an expansion of the court's separation-of-powers agenda beyond the federal level, but regulated parties and state and local governments alike can act now to anticipate Jarkesy's eventual wider application, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • Preparing For Congressional Investigations In A Midterm Year

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    2026 will be a consequential year for congressional oversight as the upcoming midterm elections may yield bolder investigations and more aggressive state attorneys general coalitions, so companies should consider adopting risk management measures to get ahead of potential changes, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Key Trends Shaping ESG And Sustainability Law In 2026

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    2025 saw a chaotic regulatory landscape and novel litigation around environmental, social and governance issues and sustainability — and 2026, while perhaps more predictable, will likely be no less challenging, with more lawsuits and a regulatory tug-of-war complicating compliance for global companies, say attorneys at Crowell.

  • For Data Centers, Both Hyperscale And Edge Are Key In 2026

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    Recent trends in development of data centers highlight the importance of proactive attention to the zoning, permitting, interconnection and contractual issues associated with both hyperscale and edge facilities, in order to position projects for responsible growth in 2026 and protect their long-term value amid rapid technological and regulatory change, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • 5 Tariff And Trade Developments To Watch In 2026

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    A new trade landscape emerged in 2025, the contours of which will be further defined by developments that will merit close attention this year, including a key ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court and a review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, says Ted Posner at Baker Botts.

  • What 2025 Enforcement Actions Show About FERC's Priorities

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    A review of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's 2025 enforcement record suggests that this year, the commission will persist in holding market participants to their commitments, and continue active market surveillance and close cooperation with market monitors, says Ruta Skucas at Crowell & Moring.

  • 4 Developments That Defined The 2025 Ethics Landscape

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    The legal profession spent 2025 at the edge of its ethical comfort zone as courts, firms and regulators confronted how fast-moving technologies and new business models collide with long-standing professional duties, signaling that the profession is entering a period of sustained disruption that will continue into 2026, says Hilary Gerzhoy at HWG Law.

  • Navigating AI In The Legal Industry

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    As artificial intelligence becomes an increasingly integral part of legal practice, Law360 guest commentary this year examined evolving ethical obligations, how the plaintiffs bar is using AI to level the playing field against corporate defense teams, and the attendant risks of adoption.

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