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Environmental
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March 18, 2024
SEC Fines Supervisor $47K Over Revenue Inflation Claims
A former finance director of water treatment company Evoqua Water Technologies Corp. will pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nearly $47,000 to resolve claims that he was part of a scheme to inflate the company's revenue by $36 million.
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March 18, 2024
GOP Rep. Calls For Crackdown On EV Threats From China
Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., a member of the House select committee on China's Communist Party and a U.S. Senate candidate, has asked the Commerce Department to investigate the imports of electronic vehicles and their components and the possible security threats to the United States from electronics from China.
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March 18, 2024
Feds Try To Shake Off Youths' Constitutional Climate Suit
The government has asked a California federal judge to dismiss a group of children's lawsuit alleging the Constitution guarantees "a life-sustaining climate system" and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency allows unsafe levels of climate pollution.
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March 18, 2024
BNSF, Ports Lose Bid To Narrow Wash. Stormwater Regs
Washington state appellate judges sided with a water quality watchdog Monday in a dispute over the scope of state-issued industrial stormwater permit terms, agreeing with the environmental group's broader reading of how the rules cover "transportation facilities" run by operators such as ports and railroads.
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March 18, 2024
Feds Call $45B Nuclear Deal Appeal Moot After New Award
The federal government pressed the Federal Circuit to dismiss a contractor's appeal over registration issues with a $45 billion nuclear waste cleanup contract, arguing Monday the appeal was moot following the U.S. Department of Energy's reissuance of the deal.
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March 18, 2024
Energy Co. Exec Cops To $5.5M Commodity Kickback Scheme
A former president of a Texas energy company has pled guilty to fraudulently trading natural gas futures contracts and receiving $5.5 million in illegal kickbacks for the associated trades, the U.S. Department of Justice has said.
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March 18, 2024
Food Industry Group Urges 9th Circ. To Keep GMO Labeling Rule
A trade group representing corporate giants including Coca-Cola and General Mills has urged the Ninth Circuit to keep a federal labeling rule allowing disclosure of genetic modifications to foods to be done digitally, claiming that upsetting the rule would present "significant disruption for industry and consumers alike."
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March 18, 2024
Ex-SF Utilities Head Gets 4 Years For Bribery Conviction
A California federal judge sentenced the former head of San Francisco's Public Utilities Commission on Monday to four years in prison for his multicount bribery conviction, saying he deserves time in custody for betraying the public trust and making a "mockery" of public office.
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March 18, 2024
Judge Pauses Fla. Tribe's Suit Over Clean Water Act Program
A Florida federal judge on Monday paused a lawsuit brought by the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians alleging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency improperly granted the state permitting authority under a Clean Water Act program, saying the case could be moot if an order in similar litigation is allowed to stand.
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March 18, 2024
SunZia Argues Suit Over Power Line Project Filed Far Too Late
The developer of the proposed SunZia Southwest Transmission Project is asking an Arizona federal court to dismiss claims that the U.S. Department of the Interior failed to take a proper look at historic properties and cultural resources that the 550-mile power line might affect, arguing that the allegations are time-barred.
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March 18, 2024
Latham-Led Talos Sells Carbon Capture Co. In $148M Deal
Talos Energy, represented by Latham & Watkins LLP, announced Monday it sold its entire carbon capture and sequestration business to a U.S.-based subsidiary of French multinational TotalEnergies for $148 million, citing plans to use the proceeds for loan repayment and general corporate purposes.
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March 18, 2024
Plaintiffs Call For Sanctions Over PFAS MDL Deal Threat
A proposed class in multidistrict litigation against DuPont and others alleging they contaminated drinking water with PFAS chemicals is urging a South Carolina federal court to sanction attorneys for a California water service, saying they violated court rules in their latest objections to a settlement.
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March 18, 2024
Can EPA Shut Down State Air Plans? The Battle Isn't Over
The D.C. Circuit reversed some U.S. Environmental Protection Agency vetoes of state air quality plans that gave power plants and other facilities a break when they exceed air emissions limits when they're starting up, shutting down or malfunctioning, but the court's decision wasn't a complete loss for the EPA and opened avenues for new litigation.
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March 18, 2024
NYSE Moves To Boot Wilbur Ross-Backed SPAC
Ross Acquisition Corp. II, a special-purpose acquisition company founded by former U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, disclosed Monday the New York Stock Exchange has suspended trading of its shares and began the delisting process after the SPAC failed to complete a merger within the required three-year time frame.
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March 18, 2024
EPA Bans Most Common Asbestos In 'Cancer Moonshot' Rule
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday finalized a ban on the most prevalent variety of asbestos, the first asbestos risk management rule issued since the Toxic Substances Control Act was amended in 2016.
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March 18, 2024
4th Circ. Preview: Airport Mishap, Inmate Pay Launch March
The Fourth Circuit's spring session will task the court with refereeing a power struggle between Virginia regulators and the authority that runs Washington, D.C.'s airports — stemming from a workplace amputation — and delving into the "honest belief" doctrine's role in a Family Medical Leave Act case.
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March 18, 2024
Energy Dept. Says Alaska LNG Review Passes Legal Muster
The U.S. Department of Energy on Friday defended its reapproval of a $43 billion liquefied natural gas project in Alaska, telling the D.C. Circuit that its additional environmental review sufficiently considered the climate change impacts of the controversial project.
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March 16, 2024
Up Next At High Court: Gov't Jawboning & Retaliatory Arrests
The U.S. Supreme Court has a packed oral arguments calendar this week that includes disputes over the Biden administration's work with social media companies to combat misinformation, the appropriate evidence standard for bringing retaliatory arrest claims and whether the federal government can object to a consent decree entered into by three states.
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March 15, 2024
5th Circ. Blocks SEC Climate Reporting Regulations, For Now
The Fifth Circuit on Friday temporarily blocked the implementation of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's new emissions reporting requirements, issuing an administrative stay in a challenge brought by oil and gas company Liberty Energy Inc.
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March 15, 2024
Alaska, Cos. Hit Feds With $700B Pebble Mine Takings Suits
The state of Alaska and a company behind the controversial Pebble Mine construction project filed separate takings lawsuits against the federal government in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims on Thursday, seeking more than $700 billion in damages for blocking development of the area that's home to important fisheries.
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March 15, 2024
Conservationists Seek Block Of Refuge Power Line Deal
Conservation groups are asking a Wisconsin federal judge to stop the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from executing a land swap that would let power companies run the Cardinal-Hickory Creek high-voltage transmission line across the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.
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March 15, 2024
DC Circ. Presses FERC On Justification For Pipeline Expansion
A D.C. Circuit panel on Friday questioned whether the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission had demonstrated that a Northeast pipeline expansion project was necessary to ensure that the region would have enough natural gas during extremely cold weather.
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March 15, 2024
SolarEdge Hit With Derivative Suit Over 2023 Earnings Miss
Current and former executives and directors of equipment maker SolarEdge Technologies Inc. face an investor's derivative suit in Manhattan federal court alleging they concealed distributor order cancelations and other developments that would ultimately result in a low quarterly revenue outcome.
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March 15, 2024
Divided 5th Circ. Rejects Atomic Waste Site Dispute Rehearing
A narrowly divided Fifth Circuit has widened a circuit split by refusing to reconsider its ruling that U.S. nuclear energy regulators illegally approved an atomic waste site in West Texas, ruling the Lone Star State and mineral owners could challenge the decision without participating in the licensing process.
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March 15, 2024
SEC, VW Reach $48.7M Deal To End 'Clean Diesel' Fraud Suit
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Volkswagen Group of America Finance told a California federal court on Friday that they have reached a $48.7 million settlement to end claims that the automaker defrauded U.S. investors in its scheme to cheat emissions standards in its vehicles.
Expert Analysis
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Takeaways From EPA's New Methane Emission Rules
Attorneys at V&E examine two new Clean Air Act rules for the oil and gas industry, explaining how they expand methane and volatile organic compound emission reduction requirements and amplify U.S. Environmental Protection Agency enforcement risks.
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3 Litigation Strategies To Combat 'Safetyism'
Amid the rise of safetyism — the idea that every person should be free from the risk of harm or discomfort — among jurors and even judges, defense counsel can mount several tactics from the very start of litigation to counteract these views and blunt the potential for jackpot damages, says Ann Marie Duffy at Hollingsworth.
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Risks Of Nonmutual Offensive Collateral Estoppel In MDLs
After the Supreme Court declined to review the Sixth Circuit's ruling in the E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. personal injury litigation, nonmutual offensive collateral estoppel could show up in more MDLs, and transform the loss of a single MDL bellwether trial into a de facto classwide decision that binds thousands of other MDL cases, say Chantale Fiebig and Luke Sullivan at Weil Gotshal.
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What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks
Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.
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5 Things Trial Attorneys Can Learn From Good Teachers
Jennifer Cuculich at IMS Legal Strategies recounts lessons she learned during her time as a math teacher that can help trial attorneys connect with jurors, from the importance of framing core issues to the incorporation of different learning styles.
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Legal Considerations For Circular Economy Strategies
As circular economy goals — generating revenue at multiple points in a product's life cycle — become nearly ubiquitous in corporate sustainability practices, companies should reassess existing strategies by focusing on government incentives, regulations, and reporting and disclosure requirements, say Rachel Saltzman and Erin Grisby at Hunton.
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SEC's Final Climate Disclosure Rules: What Cos. Must Know
While the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's scaled-back final rules requiring public companies to disclose certain climate-related information still face challenges in court, companies should begin preparing now to comply with the rules, say Celia Soehner and Erin Martin at Morgan Lewis.
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Caremark 2.0 Lends Shareholders Agency Against Polluters
The Caremark doctrine has been liberalized by recent Delaware court decisions into what some have termed a 2.0 version, making derivative cases against corporations far more plausible and invigorating oversight duty on environmental risks like toxic spills and air pollution, say Joshua Margolin and Sean Goldman-Hunt at Selendy Gay.
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Preempting Bottled Water Microplastics Fraud Claims
Food products like bottled water are increasingly likely to be targets of consumer fraud complaints due to alleged microplastics contamination — but depending on the labeling or advertising at issue, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act can provide a powerful preemption defense, say Tariq Naeem and Brenda Sweet at Tucker Ellis.
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Wildfire Challenges For Utility Investors: Regs And Financing
For investors in public utilities, wildfire liability considerations include not only regulatory complexities, but also bankruptcy claims resolution, financing judgments and settlements, and how to leverage organizational structures to maximize investment protections, say David Botter and Lisa Schweitzer at Cleary.
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Business Litigators Have A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment
As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.
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Wildfire Challenges For Utility Investors: Liability Theories
The greater frequency and scale of wildfires in the last several years have created operational and fiscal challenges for electric utility companies, including new theories of liability and unique operational and risk management considerations — all of which must be carefully considered by utility investors, say David Botter and Lisa Schweitzer at Cleary.
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5 Ways To Hone Deposition Skills And Improve Results
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Depositions must never be taken for granted in the preparations needed to win a dispositive motion or a trial, and five best practices, including knowing when to hire a videographer, can significantly improve outcomes, says James Argionis at Cozen O'Connor.
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Series
Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
A lifetime of skiing has helped me develop important professional skills, and taught me that embracing challenges with a spirit of adventure can allow lawyers to push boundaries, expand their capabilities and ultimately excel in their careers, says Andrea Przybysz at Tucker Ellis.
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Bid Protest Spotlight: Conflict, Latent Ambiguity, Cost Realism
In this month's bid protest roundup, Markus Speidel at MoFo examines a trio of U.S. Government Accountability Office decisions with takeaways about the consequences of a teaming partner's organizational conflict of interest, a solicitation's latent ambiguity and an unreasonable agency cost adjustment.