EPA, Army Corps Float Trimming Clean Water Act Powers

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers on Monday proposed new limits on their ability to enforce the Clean Water Act, saying prior understandings of the federal government's authority were too broad.

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Justices Seek DOJ's Opinion In Neb.-Colo. River Dispute

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday asked the federal government to weigh in on Nebraska's request that the justices decide whether Colorado is violating the terms of an agreement that dictates the management of the South Platte River.

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Tyson Won't Make Carbon Claims Under Greenwashing Deal

By Hailey Konnath

Tyson Foods Inc. has agreed to stop making promises to reach "net-zero" greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and to sell "climate-smart" beef, according to a settlement filed Monday that resolves greenwashing allegations brought by the Environmental Working Group.

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Eaton Fire Plaintiffs Say Edison Is Delaying Litigation

By Mike Curley

A group of plaintiffs suing Southern California Edison Co. over the Eaton Fire that began in January is accusing the utility of acting in bad faith by refusing to negotiate in mediation, despite admitting to shareholders that its equipment is responsible for the blaze.

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Willkie-Led Rockland Clinches 5th Fund With $1.2B In Tow

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP-advised private equity shop Rockland Capital announced Monday that it wrapped fundraising for its fifth fund after securing $1.2 billion in investor commitments.

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EPA Diluted Facility Upgrade Review Regs, DC Circ. Told

By Keith Goldberg

Environmental groups have told the D.C. Circuit that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency unlawfully created a watered-down formula to determine whether modifications to industrial facilities trigger additional air pollution reviews.

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Advocacy Groups Push 9th Circ. To Uphold Fluoride Ruling

By Tom Lotshaw

Advocacy groups that convinced a California federal judge to rule that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's "optimal" level for fluoride in drinking water is not protective enough for children, told the Ninth Circuit Monday that there's no reason to disturb the decision.

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Tribes Urge Mich. Top Court To Block Enbridge Oil Tunnel

By Carolyn Muyskens

A group of tribes and environmental organizations has urged the Michigan Supreme Court to order a more rigorous environmental review of Enbridge Energy LP's plan for an oil pipeline tunnel beneath the Straits of Mackinac.

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AGs Seek To Freeze EPA Solar Grant Funds During Challenge

By Abigail Harrison

A coalition of states asked a Washington federal judge to maintain federal money for Solar for All grants during the pendency of their lawsuit challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to kill the program, arguing that they're likely to prevail on their claims that the agency can't legally claw back funds Congress already obligated.

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Origin Materials Investors Seek First OK For $9M Deal

By Katryna Perera

Investors in sustainable materials maker Origin Materials Inc. have asked a California federal judge to grant the first green light to a $9 million deal in a class action that claims the company and its co-CEO failed to disclose a change in direction in the company's manufacturing plans and a delay in building a new plant.

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Decade-Old Mont. Bison Dispute Spurs Call For Legal Clarity

By Crystal Owens

A neighborhood group is asking a Montana federal district court to declare a 2019 Yellowstone bison management operation plan illegal, arguing that federal agencies are allowing the state to diminish treaty hunting opportunities for Indigenous nations that provide more food for their members.

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8th Circ. Affirms Ala. Apt. Owner's $27M Fire Coverage Win

By Hope Patti

A split Eighth Circuit affirmed Monday an apartment complex owner's $27 million jury award against a Travelers unit in a fire coverage dispute, saying sufficient evidence existed to support the verdict that the presence of microscopic soot constituted "direct physical loss or damage" to property as required by the policy.

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E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Dynamic Databases

Several recent federal court decisions illustrate how parties continue to grapple with the discovery of data in dynamic databases, so counsel involved in these disputes must consider how structured data should be produced consistent with the requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, say attorneys at Sidley.

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Analysis

UK Firms Drive Transatlantic Appetite For M&A Dealmaking

By Aebra Coe and Chris Villani

The merger announced Monday between British legal giant Ashurst LLP and American law firm Perkins Coie LLP is the latest in a spate of deals driven, in part, by an appetite among global firms to gain a strong presence in the U.S.

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'Astounding' Holland & Knight Conduct Drives Liability Ruling

By Ryan Boysen

Holland & Knight LLP has forfeited a malpractice lawsuit in Alaska by refusing to turn over information to a Native American tribal corporation, with a state judge entering a default judgment as a sanction and calling the firm's conduct "a head scratcher" and "astounding."

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Brief

ABA Decries Lawmaker Calls For Impeachments Of Judges

By Courtney Bublé

The American Bar Association said on Monday it's "alarmed" by lawmakers' interest in impeaching judges just because they don't like their rulings.

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Judge Orders Grand Jury Docs Released In Comey Case

By Brandon Lowrey

A Virginia federal magistrate judge Monday ordered the disclosure of all grand jury materials related to the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, saying government misconduct may have tainted the grand jury proceedings.

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DOJ Backs White House's Military Lawyer Transfers

By Courtney Bublé

A newly released legal opinion from the U.S. Department of Justice says the Trump administration is allowed to detail military lawyers to serve as immigration judges and special assistant U.S. attorneys in the District of Columbia.

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Senator Slams Trump For 'Blowing Up' Wis. US Atty Process

By Courtney Bublé

Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., accused President Donald Trump on Monday of skirting the process to nominate U.S. attorneys in Wisconsin with his pick of a failed Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate for the office that covers Milwaukee.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court and Delaware Supreme Court last week had a dense slate of fiduciary duty battles, merger-process challenges, post-bankruptcy fights and a series of cases probing the limits of fraud pleading, credible-basis inspections and board-level disclosure duties.

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Law School Admission Council Pushes To Toss Antitrust Suit

By Andrea Keckley

The Law School Admission Council is continuing its push to toss a proposed class action accusing it of fixing application fees with its member schools, saying in a Pennsylvania federal court filing last week that the applicant's opposition to its dismissal motion "entirely fails to engage with the incoherence at the core of his case."

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Holyoak Leaves FTC For Interim US Atty In Utah

By Bryan Koenig

Melissa Holyoak left the Federal Trade Commission on Monday to become Utah's interim U.S. attorney, leaving the FTC down to two commissioners, both Republicans, in the Trump administration's latest use of interim U.S. attorney appointments.

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