Energy

  • November 21, 2024

    FERC Heeds States' Worries With Grid Planning Policy Rewrite

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Thursday approved changes to its sweeping revision of its regional transmission planning policies, and a heftier role for states in the planning process was enough to assuage the concerns of a commissioner who dissented from the original rule.

  • November 21, 2024

    Fuel Economy Regs Are Unlawful Path To EVs, 6th Circ. Told

    Republican-led states and fuel industry groups have told the Sixth Circuit that the U.S. Department of Transportation overstepped with new vehicle fuel-economy standards that amount to an unlawful electric vehicles mandate, while environmental groups say the standards don't go far enough to meaningfully combat climate change.

  • November 21, 2024

    DC Circ. Judges Disagree On Standing In Drilling Permit Suit

    The judges of the D.C. Circuit stepped on each other's toes Thursday during oral arguments over a challenge to the approvals of thousands of drilling permits in New Mexico and Wyoming, appearing to be at odds over whether the environmental groups' stance on standing had legs.

  • November 21, 2024

    Key Informant Who Recorded Madigan Takes The Stand

    A former Chicago alderman who prosecutors have deemed one of their "most significant cooperators in the last several decades" took the stand Thursday afternoon and began what is expected to be multiple days of testimony in the racketeering trial of ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, whom he secretly recorded while working with the government.

  • November 21, 2024

    Trump Selects Ex-Fla. AG Pam Bondi As New AG Pick

    President-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday that he has selected Pam Bondi, a former attorney general of Florida, as his new pick for U.S. attorney general, just hours after former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration amid allegations of sexual misconduct and drug use.

  • November 21, 2024

    EPA Announces National Strategy To Tackle Plastic Pollution

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday unveiled its national strategy outlining how government agencies, businesses, nonprofits and communities can prevent plastic pollution. 

  • November 21, 2024

    EPA Floats New Draft Framework On Cumulative Impacts

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday further fleshed out exactly what it means when it tells its employees to consider the "cumulative impacts" of pollution on particular communities.

  • November 21, 2024

    Settlement Doesn't Void Injury Coverage Ruling, Judge Says

    A Colorado federal court refused to set aside its September ruling that an oil and gas production company isn't owed coverage by an electrical drilling company for a worker's underlying injury lawsuit, saying the parties' settlement negotiations don't justify vacating a valid court order.

  • November 21, 2024

    Legal Fee Suit Widens Paragon Tech Control Fight In Del.

    A running feud at the top of publicly traded investment company Paragon Technologies Inc. widened Thursday with a former CEO's filing of a Delaware Court of Chancery suit for company-paid legal fees prompted by the ex-CEO's ouster, a board investigation and other recent developments.

  • November 21, 2024

    Ill. Justices Give Marathon Chance To Avoid $15M Fuel Tax

    Marathon Petroleum presented enough evidence to rebut claims by officials of an Illinois county that it owed about $15 million in fuel taxes on transactions stemming from cash settlements for delivery contracts, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday, reversing an appellate court.

  • November 21, 2024

    Swedish EV Battery Co. Files For Ch. 11 With $5B Of Debt

    Swedish electric vehicle battery maker Northvolt AB filed a Chapter 11 case in Texas bankruptcy court Thursday, saying it wants to find a partner to enable the company's innovation to continue in the burgeoning space while it addresses a significant liquidity shortfall.

  • November 21, 2024

    California Tribe Looks To Increase Trinity River Water Flows

    The Yurok Tribe slapped the Bureau of Reclamation with a complaint in California federal court, alleging its operation of the Trinity River Division provides only minimum flows to the Trinity River in the winter and early spring, modifying and harming salmon habitat and population.

  • November 21, 2024

    Phillips 66 Charged With Dumping Wastewater In LA County

    A federal grand jury has indicted Phillips 66 on charges of violating the Clean Water Act by illegally discharging hundreds of thousands of gallons of wastewater into the Los Angeles County sewer system without reporting the violations to authorities, the U.S. Justice Department announced Thursday.

  • November 21, 2024

    Feds Outline Next Steps For Colo. River Basin Agreement

    The U.S. Department of the Interior released five proposed alternatives for the Colorado River's post-2026 operations aimed at ensuring the long-term stability of the drought-stricken Colorado River Basin for the communities and habitats that rely on it. 

  • November 21, 2024

    Pa. Enviro Hearing Board Can Sanction Atty, Court Affirms

    Pennsylvania's Environmental Hearing Board was within its power to issue its first-ever sanctions against an attorney for trying to delay an appeal with false claims that the state Attorney General's Office and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency were looking to talk to Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. over her case, a state appellate court ruled Thursday.

  • November 21, 2024

    2 Energy Transition-Focused SPACs Raise $210M Combined

    Two special purpose acquisition companies looking to capitalize on energy transition opportunities began trading publicly on Thursday after announcing pricing for their respective initial public offerings, which combined would raise $210 million.

  • November 21, 2024

    PE Posting Near-Record Megadeal Numbers, Report Shows

    Private equity dealmaking has built significant momentum this year, notching respectable deal volume and posting a record number of megadeals over $5 billion, according to a new report from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

  • November 21, 2024

    House Dems Tell Gorsuch To Recuse Over NEPA Case Conflict

    A group of House Democrats has called for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch to recuse himself from a dispute over federal environmental review requirements, arguing the court's decision could directly benefit a Colorado billionaire and former client who campaigned for the justice's first judicial appointment.

  • November 20, 2024

    Musk, Ramaswamy Say High Court Rulings OK Federal Cuts

    Billionaire Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, President-elect Donald Trump's picks to lead a newly created "Department of Government Efficiency," on Wednesday said two recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings will give them the authority to cut off power to regulatory agencies and conduct massive federal layoffs.

  • November 20, 2024

    Azerbaijan Files Energy Charter Treaty Claim Against Armenia

    The government of Azerbaijan said it has filed new legal papers in its arbitration against the Republic of Armenia under the Energy Charter Treaty, claiming it seeks financial damages for Armenia's unlawful exploitation of Azerbaijan's renewable energy projects and sites.

  • November 20, 2024

    Adani Group Chairman Charged In Sprawling Bribery Case

    Prosecutors unsealed a sprawling criminal indictment in New York federal court Wednesday, accusing Adani Group Chairman Gautam S. Adani and seven others of orchestrating a $250 million bribery scheme to secure lucrative Indian government renewable energy contracts, while misleading investors about the Adani Group subsidiary's dealings.

  • November 20, 2024

    Tribe Fights Ore. Irrigation District At 9th Circ. Over Water Use

    The Yurok Tribe has joined with fishing and conservation groups in asking the Ninth Circuit to deny an irrigation district's bid to certify questions to the Oregon Supreme Court over the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's authority to control water use under state law.

  • November 20, 2024

    Va. Gov. Can't Exit Carbon Trading Program, Judge Says

    Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin's administration can't withdraw from a regional carbon emissions-trading program the Legislature ordered the state to join three years ago without first securing legislative approval, a Virginia circuit court judge ruled Wednesday.

  • November 20, 2024

    Advance Notice Bylaw Measures Fuel Chancery Battle

    Arguing that recent corporate advance notice bylaws have resulted in "real, actual harm" to stockholders of Owings Corning and The AES Corp., attorneys for shareholders of both urged a Delaware vice chancellor on Wednesday to reject calls to dismiss challenges to the measures.

  • November 20, 2024

    FERC Says There's No Need To Ref Mich. Grid Upgrade Fight

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission defended its decision that Michigan Electric Transmission Co. failed to establish that shared ownership of new grid updates needed to serve a Michigan solar farm was necessarily precluded, telling the D.C. Circuit the electric utility hasn't shown how it's harmed.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 Tips For Solar Cos. Navigating Big Shifts In US Trade Policy

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    Renewable energy developers can best mitigate new compliance risks from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s increased tariffs on imported solar cells, and simultaneously capitalize on Treasury Department incentives for domestic solar manufacturers, by following five best practices in the changing solar trade landscape, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Series

    Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.

  • Half-Truths Vs. Omissions: Slicing Justices' Macquarie Cake

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Macquarie v. Moab provides a road map for determining whether corporate reports that omit information should be considered misleading — and the court baked it into a dessert analogy that is key to understanding the guidelines, say Daniel Levy and Pavithra Kumar at Advanced Analytical Consulting Group.

  • Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity

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    The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • 3 Areas Of Enforcement Risk Facing The EV Industry

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    Companies in the EV manufacturing ecosystem are experiencing a boom in business, but with this boom comes increased regulatory and enforcement risks, from the corruption issues that have historically pervaded the extractive sector to newer risks posed by artificial intelligence, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Ambiguity Ruling Highlights Deference To Arbitral Process

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    A New York federal court’s recent ruling in Eletson v. Levona, which remanded an arbitral award for clarification, reflects that the ambiguity exception’s analysis is not static and may be applied even in cases where the award, when issued, was unambiguous, says arbitrator Myrna Barakat Friedman.

  • Keeping Up With Carbon Capture Policy In The US And EU

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    Recent regulatory moves from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the European Commission in the carbon capture, sequestration and storage space are likely to further encourage the owners and operators of fossil fuel-fired power plants to make decisions on shutdowns or reconfiguration to meet the expanding requirements, say Inosi Nyatta and Silvia Brünjes at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • New State Climate Liability Laws: What Companies Must Know

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    New legislation in Vermont and New York creating liability and compliance obligations for businesses deemed responsible for climate change — as well as similar bills proposed in California, Massachusetts and Maryland — have far-reaching implications for companies, so it is vital to remain vigilant as these initiatives progress, say Gregory Berlin and Jeffrey Dintzer at Alston & Bird.

  • EU Investor-State Dispute Transparency Rules: Key Points

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    The European Union's recent vote to embrace greater transparency for investor-state arbitration will make managing newly public information more complex for all parties in a dispute — so it is important for stakeholders to understand the risks and opportunities involved, say Philip Hall, Tara Flores and Charles McKeon at Thorndon Partners.

  • Despite Calif. Delays, Climate Disclosure Rules Are Coming

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    Progress continues on state, federal and international climate disclosure regimes, making compliance a key concern for companies — but the timeline for implementation of California's disclosure laws remains unclear due to funding and timing disputes, says David Smith at Manatt Phelps.

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Intra-EU Enforcement Trends

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    Hungary recently declared a distinct stance on the European Court of Justice's 2021 ruling in Moldavia v. Komstroy on intra-EU arbitration under the Energy Charter Treaty, highlighting a critical divergence in the bloc on enforcing investment awards and the complexities of balancing regional uniformity with international obligations, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • Opinion

    Now More Than Ever, Lawyers Must Exhibit Professionalism

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    As society becomes increasingly fractured and workplace incivility is on the rise, attorneys must champion professionalism and lead by example, demonstrating how lawyers can respectfully disagree without being disagreeable, says Edward Casmere at Norton Rose.

  • What Happens After Hawaii Kids' Historic Climate Deal

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    Implications of the Hawaii Department of Transportation's first-of-its-kind settlement with youth plaintiffs over constitutional climate claims may be limited, but it could incite similar claims, says J. Michael Showalter and Robert Middleton at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Series

    Serving In The National Guard Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My ongoing military experience as a judge advocate general in the National Guard has shaped me as a person and a lawyer, teaching me the importance of embracing confidence, balance and teamwork in both my Army and civilian roles, says Danielle Aymond at Baker Donelson.

  • Big Business May Come To Rue The Post-Administrative State

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    Many have framed the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions overturning Chevron deference and extending the window to challenge regulations as big wins for big business, but sand in the gears of agency rulemaking may be a double-edged sword, creating prolonged uncertainty that impedes businesses’ ability to plan for the future, says Todd Baker at Columbia University.

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