Feds Sue To Block State Climate Suits, Superfund Laws

By Carolyn Muyskens

The federal government sued to block two states' climate change Superfund laws and stop two other states from launching threatened lawsuits against fossil fuel companies, saying the states' actions jeopardize national energy security.

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Calif. AG Can't Dodge ACC Recycling Subpoena Suit

By Ali Sullivan

The American Chemistry Council can move forward with its challenge to a since-withdrawn subpoena from the California attorney general tied to a plastics pollution probe, a D.C. federal judge ruled Thursday.

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States, Green Groups Look To Vacate NEPA Ruling

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

States that had asked the Eighth Circuit to revive vacated National Environmental Policy Act regulations are now abandoning their appeal because the White House has eliminated the standards — but they're still asking that a lower court's decision striking down the regulations be overturned.

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Senate Votes To Strike EPA 'Once In, Always In' Rule Update

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

The U.S. Senate on Thursday voted to eliminate a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule aimed at restricting industrial facilities' harmful air emissions after being reclassified as a less severe pollution source.

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Brief

House Votes To Axe Another EPA Emissions Waiver For Calif.

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed the third of three Congressional Review Act resolutions that would undo Clean Air Act waivers that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued for California's vehicle emissions programs.

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CR Bard Owes For Plant Neighbor's Illness, Jury Told

By Cara Salvatore

A Georgia jury heard in closing arguments on Thursday that C.R. Bard's medical sterilization plant wantonly polluted the air with ethylene oxide and caused a man's cancer, while the company said the man's exposure was nowhere near danger levels.

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VW, Audi Say Recall Fixes Nullify EV Fire-Risk Lawsuit

By Jonathan Capriel

Drivers who claimed Audi of America LLC and Volkswagen Group of America Inc. sold them electric vehicles with defective batteries that could short circuit and catch fire while driving have never actually suffered this alleged issue, the automakers said in their bid seeking to dismiss the proposed class action.

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9th Circ. Asked To Revisit Ruling On Guam Munitions Suit

By Tom Lotshaw

A Ninth Circuit decision allowing a Guam group to challenge an Air Force permit renewal application to detonate expired munitions conflicts with precedent and threatens to burden permit applicants, agencies and courts, the U.S. government said in a rehearing petition filed Wednesday.

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Hawaii Tenant's Tainted Water Eviction Claims Survive Ruling

By Nate Beck

A Hawaii federal judge preserved a tenant's claims that he was effectively evicted from his home when a landlord failed to identify or warn of water contamination caused by leaks in 2021 at a U.S. Navy fuel storage facility on Pearl Harbor.

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Insurance Pros Stress Disaster Mitigation In Senate Hearing

By Jennifer Mandato

A panel of insurance experts stressed in front of a U.S. Senate committee Thursday the importance of mitigation efforts, such as strengthening building codes and hardening homes, as the experts discussed how prices in the property insurance market have soared because of recent natural disasters across the country.

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Sony Eyes $49B Semiconductor Unit Sale, Plus More Rumors

By Tom Zanki

Sony could sell its semiconductor unit for $49 billion, while proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis is considering ending its practice of advising shareholder votes on politically charged topics, and AI startup Nscale plans to raise $2.7 billion in private capital to support the construction of data centers around the world.

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Despite SEC Climate Pause, Cos. Must Still Heed State Regs

While businesses may have been given a reprieve from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's rules aimed at standardizing climate-related disclosures, they must still track evolving requirements in states including California, Illinois, New Jersey and New York that will soon require reporting of direct and indirect carbon emissions, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

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Series

Teaching College Students Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Serving as an adjunct college professor has taught me the importance of building rapport, communicating effectively, and persuading individuals to critically analyze the difference between what they think and what they know — principles that have helped to improve my practice of law, says Sheria Clarke at Nelson Mullins.

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Attys Join Nationwide 'Day Of Action' Rallies For Rule Of Law

By Ryan Boysen and Jack Rodgers

Thousands of attorneys gathered at rallies across the country on Thursday to oppose what they called the Trump administration's "assault" on the rule of law — a rare public demonstration for the normally buttoned-down and risk-averse professionals that they said "sounds the alarm of a looming constitutional crisis."

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Analysis

Hair, Makeup, Legal: The Lawyering Behind The Met Gala

By Theresa Schliep

While the red carpet arrivals of the biggest names in the entertainment industry are sure to win the most attention at the Met Gala on Monday, attorneys also play a significant role in advising the brands and celebrities at the center of fashion's biggest night.

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20 Former Federal Judges Launch Group To Defend Judiciary

By Jake Maher

Twenty former federal district and circuit judges on Thursday launched a coalition to speak out about and defend the federal judiciary as political impeachment attempts against judges increase and the federal courts system faces heightened scrutiny.

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Paul Hastings, GenapSys Settle Calif. Legal Malpractice Suit

By James Mills

The legal malpractice suit in which gene sequencing company GenapSys Inc. argued Paul Hastings LLP caused GenapSys' bankruptcy appears to have been settled.

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GOP Seeks To Stop 'Frivolous Lawsuits' With Reconciliation

By Courtney Bublé

The House Judiciary Committee approved along party lines a proposal they say will prevent "frivolous lawsuits" by barring courts from enforcing contempt citations for failure to comply with injunctions if the plaintiff has not posted a bond for litigation costs.

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5 Fed. Circ. Clashes To Watch This Month

By Ryan Davis

The Federal Circuit's argument calendar for May includes appeals of two nine-figure patent verdicts — one against Apple and one against Medtronic — and Roku's bid to revive its remote control patent suit at the U.S. International Trade Commission after a loss tied to the commission's domestic industry requirement.

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Senate Panel Delays A Vote On Martin Nomination For US Atty

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday held off for now a vote to call for a hearing on Ed Martin's nomination for U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, a move Democrats say would allow more time to review his record and, they hope, convince enough Republicans to help them block his nomination.

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Ex-Exec's Claims Against Dechert Still No Good, 2nd Circ. Told

By Pete Brush

A North Carolina trade executive's latest trip to the Second Circuit in his quest to win damages for alleged hacking by a private investigator on Dechert LLP's behalf should end like the others, with a dismissal, defense counsel argued Thursday.

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New Bill Holds Judges Accountable Even After They Retire

By Hailey Konnath

A Georgia Congressman on Thursday introduced legislation that would ensure misconduct complaints against judges would still be investigated, even if the judge has resigned, retired or even died.

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Colo. Judge Resigns Amid Allegations Over Misuse Of Bench

By Thy Vo

A Colorado state judge resigned on Wednesday amid a disciplinary complaint accusing him of misusing his position to help a former client that he exchanged sexual and flirtatious texts with, telling an independent panel in a brief that it no longer needs to hear a disciplinary case against him.

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The Top In-House Hires Of April

By Michele Gorman

Legal department hires over the past month included high-profile appointments at FanDuel's parent company, American Airlines and soda business Swig. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at some of the top in-house announcements from the first full month of spring.

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