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Construction
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April 25, 2024
FERC Says National Grid Held Up To Winter Weather
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission revealed during its monthly meeting Thursday that the nation's electric grid and natural gas systems largely operated without any major incidents when severe winter weather swept across the country in January, marking a stark improvement from previous winter storms.
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April 25, 2024
US Says Seizure Power Erodes Landowner's Border Wall Suit
The federal government told the Fifth Circuit that its eminent domain authority should defeat a landowner's claims that she owns a $6.5 million section of border wall that was allegedly built on her farm without authorization in 2008.
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April 25, 2024
Biden Permitting Reform To Fast-Track Power Line Approvals
Streamlined federal permitting for electric transmission projects is expected to shave years off the authorization process and speed up development of new power connections, according to a final new rule released on Thursday by the Biden administration.
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April 25, 2024
3 Things Attys Should Know About Pa.'s $48B Spending Plan
Several areas of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's proposed $48 billion budget for 2024-2025 could result in more work for the legal industry, including more opportunities for crafting economic development deals, getting a recreational cannabis industry off the ground, and speeding up environmental permit applications, experts tell Law360.
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April 25, 2024
Treasury Finalizes Rules On Sales Of Green Energy Credits
The U.S. Department of the Treasury released final rules Thursday to facilitate the sale or transfer of clean energy tax credits by project owners under a new way to monetize the incentives created by the 2022 landmark climate law.
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April 24, 2024
Construction Supplier Threatened Us, Distribution Execs Say
Current and former executives for construction distribution companies told a Denver jury Wednesday they believed a Berkshire Hathaway-owned construction supply company pressured them not to do business with a smaller rival, with one witness saying he initially stuck with the Berkshire supplier because it didn't seem like an "idle threat."
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April 24, 2024
DOL Says Firm 'Repeatedly' Misclassified Highway Workers
The U.S. Department of Labor recently determined that a subcontractor "repeatedly misclassified" employees who worked on 25 federal highway construction projects in Pennsylvania, according to a notice filed in Pennsylvania federal court Wednesday in a lawsuit against three construction firms.
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April 24, 2024
Insurer Wants Other Carrier's Third-Party Coverage Suit Axed
An insurer asked a Colorado federal court to toss Acuity's third-party suit alleging breach of contract in a coverage dispute over a construction defect arbitration proceeding, saying the claim failed because there is no privity of contract between the two carriers.
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April 24, 2024
Texas Appeals Panel Partially Reverses Atty's Fee Victory
An Austin, Texas, trial lawyer who defeated a breach of fiduciary duty claim brought after he represented one half of a business partnership that went sour has had part of his victory overturned, with a Texas appellate court Wednesday determining that the trial court overstepped when also throwing out a fee claim against the attorney.
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April 24, 2024
Feds' 'Sparse' Explanations Call For Remand, Says Rebar Co.
An error and "sparse" justification underpinning a countervailing duty assessment required the U.S. Court of International Trade to remand the results of the fifth review of Turkish rebar tariffs, counsel told CIT Judge Gary S. Katzmann on Wednesday.
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April 24, 2024
Mass. Golf Course Manager Gets 13 Months For Tax Fraud
A Massachusetts golf course manager was sentenced to 13 months in prison after pleading guilty to tax charges, following prosecutors' accusations that he manipulated contracts with a home developer to deflate their value.
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April 24, 2024
US Solar Cos. Call For Duties On Cells From Southeast Asia
Seven U.S. solar manufacturers on Wednesday called on the U.S. government to impose duties on solar cells from four Southeast Asian countries, saying a surge in production in those countries — much by Chinese-owned companies — has been undercutting the domestic market.
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April 24, 2024
Biden Admin Closes $362M Loan To Texas EV-Wiring Maker
The Biden administration has finalized a $362 million loan to help pay for a Texas automotive-wiring component plant, a move intended to boost the U.S. domestic supply chain for electric vehicles.
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April 24, 2024
DTE Says Toshiba Must Share Info On $500M Plant Upgrade
Michigan's largest energy companies want to force Toshiba Corp. to disclose details about its allegedly botched work on a hydroelectric plant, arguing it can't claim the documents are confidential just because they were shared with prospective buyers.
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April 24, 2024
Landlords Bring NY Rent Law Challenge To High Court Again
Thirteen New York property owners urged the U.S. Supreme Court to review their challenge to two 2019 changes to New York rental laws, arguing that the suit is the better-tailored vehicle Justice Clarence Thomas signaled interest in when denying a similar challenge in January.
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April 24, 2024
California Atty Must Face Defamation Claims Over Texts
An Orange County attorney cannot hide behind claims of litigation privilege and must face defamation claims over disparaging text messages he sent about a contractor working on his home, a California state appeals court said Tuesday.
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April 23, 2024
Monsanto Judge Slashes $857M PCB Jury Verdict
A Washington state judge slashed a nearly $860 million PCB poisoning verdict against Monsanto by roughly half on Tuesday, while the company sought to avoid future losses by moving to sever an upcoming 14-plaintiff trial in another toxic tort stemming from the same Evergreen State school site.
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April 23, 2024
$12M Chicago Toxic Demolition Settlement Receives Final OK
An Illinois federal judge gave his final blessing to a group of Chicago residents' $12.25 million settlement with a developer and several contractors that allegedly covered a neighborhood in potentially toxic dust during a smokestack demolition.
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April 23, 2024
Chinese Foam-Making Chemicals Dominate Market, Co. Warns
The U.S. subsidiary of an Israel-based chemical manufacturer urged the U.S. government Tuesday to impose anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Chinese-origin alkyl phosphate esters, saying imports of the chemical commonly used in making polyurethane foam are taking over the U.S. market.
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April 23, 2024
NJ Appeals Court Backs State's Siting Regs For Solar Projects
A New Jersey state appeals court on Tuesday upheld project-siting requirements under a Garden State law encouraging new solar development, rejecting a renewable energy industry group's argument that the requirements are unlawfully strict.
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April 23, 2024
Baltimore Sues Owners Of Ship That Crashed Into Key Bridge
Baltimore wants the owners and operators of the cargo ship that knocked down a part of the Francis Scott Key Bridge to pay for the rebuild and cover billions of dollars of revenue the city will likely lose out on while its port is shut down, according to a federal complaint the municipality's leaders filed Monday.
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April 23, 2024
Trade Court Orders Feds To Rethink Canadian Lumber Duties
The U.S. Court of International Trade ordered the U.S. Department of Commerce to redo countervailing duties on Canadian lumber, saying the department must better explain its refusal to check whether suppliers for investigated companies had received government subsidies.
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April 23, 2024
Cleveland-Cliffs Execs Say US Steel-Nippon Deal Is 'Dead'
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. executives said Tuesday that U.S. Steel is "denying reality" as it continues to pursue its $14.9 billion sale to Japan's Nippon Steel, suggesting that the deal is effectively "dead" following President Joe Biden's opposition to it and that the Ohio-based steel manufacturer remains the only viable buyer.
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April 23, 2024
Locke Lord Wins Appellate Review Of Malpractice Suit
Locke Lord LLP has convinced a New Jersey state appellate court to review a trial court's ruling rejecting the firm's attempt to evade a malpractice suit alleging that it mishandled a transaction involving an oil refinery project in North Dakota.
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April 23, 2024
Hunton Hires Martin Marietta Assistant GC In San Francisco
Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP said Tuesday it is growing its environmental team by bringing in a land use and mining expert as a partner in the firm's San Francisco office from building supply company Martin Marietta Materials Inc., where he was assistant general counsel.
Expert Analysis
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Series
ESG Around The World: Australia
Clive Cachia and Cathy Ma at K&L Gates detail ESG-reporting policies in Australia and explain how the country is starting to introduce mandatory requirements as ESG performance is increasingly seen as a key investment and corporate differentiator in the fight for global capital.
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What New EPA Enforcement Initiatives Mean For Industry
With the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent announcement that climate change, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and coal ash will be major investigation and enforcement targets in the coming years, the oil and gas, chemical, and waste management sectors should anticipate increased scrutiny, say Jonathan Brightbill and Madalyn Feiger at Winston & Strawn.
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Bat's Newly Endangered Status Likely To Slow Development
A recent change in the classification of the northern long-eared bat from "threatened" to "endangered" could have significant effects on development in large portions of the Eastern and Southeastern U.S. — and in the absence of straightforward guidelines, developers will have to assess each project individually, says Peter McGrath at Moore & Van Allen.
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Twitter Legal Fees Suit Offers Crash Course In Billing Ethics
X Corp.'s suit alleging that Wachtell grossly inflated its fees in the final days of Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition provides a case study in how firms should protect their reputations by hewing to ethical billing practices and the high standards for professional conduct that govern attorney-client relationships, says Lourdes Fuentes at Karta Legal.
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Opinion
Laws Based On Rapid Drug Tests Are Unscientific And Unfair
Given the widespread legalization of marijuana, states are increasingly implementing laws to penalize drivers under the influence of drugs, but the laws do more harm than good as the rapid tests they rely on do not accurately measure impairment, say Josh Bloom and Henry Miller at the American Council on Science and Health.
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Self-Disclosure Lessons From Exemplary Corp. Resolutions
With scant examples of corporate resolutions in the wake of U.S. Department of Justice self-disclosure policy changes last fall, companies may glean helpful insights from three recent declination letters, as well as other governmental self-reporting regimes, say Lindsey Collins and Kate Rumsey at Sheppard Mullin.
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The Heat Is On For Calif. Employers Under New OSHA Rules
California's Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently proposed rules would require significant efforts from employers in order to create heat safety protections for indoor workers — so they should take initiative now to get in compliance and ensure a safe and cool working environment, says Eric Fox at Quarles & Brady.
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Offshore Wind Auction Results Portend Difficulties In Gulf
Results of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's recent auction of the Gulf of Mexico lease areas tell different stories about the future of offshore wind in the U.S., with the Gulf’s low interest suggesting uncertainty and the Mid-Atlantic’s strong interest suggesting a promising market, say attorneys at K&L Gates.
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ABA's Money-Laundering Resolution Is A Balancing Act
While the American Bar Association’s recently passed resolution recognizes a lawyer's duty to discontinue representation that could facilitate money laundering and other fraudulent activity, it preserves, at least for now, the delicate balance of judicial, state-based regulation of the legal profession and the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.
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Bid Protest Spotlight: Unfair Advantage, Buy American Waiver
In this month's bid protest roundup, James Tucker at MoFo offers takeaways on one decision that considers unfair proposal development advantages in the context of an employee's access to nonpublic information in a prior federal government position, and another decision that reconsiders a contract award based on an inadequately supported waiver of Buy American Act restrictions.
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Prevailing Wage Rules Complicate Inflation Act Tax Incentives
Nicole Elliott and Timothy Taylor at Holland & Knight discuss the intersection between tax and labor newly created by the Inflation Reduction Act, and focus on aspects of recent U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of the Treasury rules that may catch tax-incentive seekers off guard.
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Regulators Must Get Creative To Keep Groundwater Flowing
Even as populations have boomed in Sun Belt states like Arizona, California and Texas, groundwater levels have diminished due to drought and overuse — so regulators must explore options including pumping limits, groundwater replenishment and wastewater reuse to ensure future supplies for residential and commercial needs, says Jeffrey Davis at Integral Consulting.
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Issues To Watch As Biochar Carbon Project Demand Heats Up
Entities considering financing, constructing or operating biochar projects should evaluate the increasing demand for biochar as a soil amendment, the potential to generate revenue from carbon credits and produce other byproducts, and a variety of legal hurdles in this rapidly emerging market, say Mackenzie Schoonmaker and Astrika Adams at Beveridge & Diamond.
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Law Firm Professional Development Steps To Thrive In AI Era
As generative artificial intelligence tools rapidly evolve, professional development leaders are instrumental in preparing law firms for the paradigm shifts ahead, and should consider three strategies to help empower legal talent with the skills required to succeed in an increasingly complex technological landscape, say Steve Gluckman and Anusia Gillespie at SkillBurst Interactive.
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Industry Takeaways From OMB's Final Buy America Guidance
The Office of Management and Budget's recently released guidance on "Buy America" requirements for federal infrastructure projects provides clarity in certain areas but fails to address troublesome inconsistencies with state laws and international trade agreements, so manufacturers and suppliers will need to tread carefully as agencies implement the changes, say Amy Hoang and Sarah Barney at Seyfarth Shaw.