Energy

  • March 12, 2025

    Willkie Beats Malpractice Suit Over ERISA Ch. 11 Advice

    An Ohio federal judge affirmed Tuesday a bankruptcy court's decision tossing legal malpractice claims filed by a coal company executive's estate against Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, rejecting the estate's arguments it sufficiently alleged Willkie was grossly negligent in failing to warn the estate about a potential $6.5 billion ERISA liability.

  • March 12, 2025

    Pa. Coal Co. Auction Gets 2-Week Pause After Value Spike

    A Pennsylvania bankruptcy judge has agreed to allow a pause in the auction of bankrupt Corsa Coal Corp.'s assets after hearing from lawyers in the Chapter 11 case that the machinery, equipment and real estate being sold has recently been appraised for more than the current bids.

  • March 12, 2025

    Justices Face Renewed Calls To Nix Mass. Wind Farm Permits

    Fishing industry groups have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to undo federal approvals of the Vineyard Wind project off the Massachusetts coast, less than two months after the justices declined to consider another legal challenge by project opponents.

  • March 12, 2025

    Northvolt's Ch. 11 Dismissal Possible After Swedish Filing

    Bankrupt electric vehicle battery maker Northvolt AB told a Texas bankruptcy judge that its Chapter 11 case is possibly headed for dismissal after its parent company filed an insolvency case in Swedish court early Wednesday.

  • March 12, 2025

    Ohio Man Gets 30 Months For $2M Energy Investment Scam

    An Ohio man was sentenced to 2½ years in federal prison for his role in a $2 million scheme that duped investors into thinking they were funding the construction of a plant that would convert biodegradable waste into green energy, acting U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti announced.

  • March 12, 2025

    Feds, Ex-Cognizant Execs Ink April Date For FCPA Trial

    A New Jersey federal judge set an April 7 trial date for the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act case against two former Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. executives on Wednesday, firming up a case timeline that's been beset by multiple delays, most recently due to the Trump administration's retreat from enforcing the statute.

  • March 12, 2025

    Construction Co. Must Face Insurer's $7M Iron Plant Fire Suit

    A construction company can't avoid an AIG unit's $7 million subrogation suit over a fire at an iron processing plant, a Texas federal court ruled, saying the insurer sufficiently stated a claim for negligence.

  • March 12, 2025

    Energy Co. Asks Justices To Skip On Inspector's OT Case

    Energy industry service provider Killick Group told the U.S. Supreme Court that the Fifth Circuit correctly considered a pipeline inspector an independent contractor because he had autonomy in his job, urging the justices to stay out of the worker's overtime case.

  • March 11, 2025

    Oil Trader Opposes Poland's Bid To Toss $55M Energy Award

    A Cypriot multinational commodities trader wants a D.C. federal court to deny Poland's bid to toss the company's petition to confirm a $55 million arbitral award, saying the country wrongly claims the award no longer exists.

  • March 11, 2025

    USPTO Acting Director To Review Bitcoin, Railway Patents

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's current acting director made some of her first moves wading into patent board rulings, deciding last week to take a closer look at two board decisions involving blockchain mines and railway signs.

  • March 11, 2025

    Trump Admin Shutters EPA's Enviro Justice Office

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday dissolved its more than 30-year-old environmental justice and civil rights office, the latest in a string of EPA actions targeting efforts to ease pollution burdens on historically disadvantaged communities.

  • March 11, 2025

    Zachry Opposes Nebraska Utility's $38M Administrative Claim

    Bankrupt natural gas contractor Zachry Holdings has objected to a Nebraska public electric utility's administrative claim seeking $38 million in damages for delays in the construction of new generating stations, saying it is too early to seek the claim, and the requested fees exceed the purported damages.

  • March 11, 2025

    Utilities Want FCC To Clarify TCPA Prior Consent Rule

    Power utilities asked the Federal Communications Commission to clarify that federal law allows companies to contact customers about participating in company demand management programs, particularly by calling and texting customers during peak load periods encouraging them to shift energy consumption to nonpeak times.

  • March 11, 2025

    EPA Officially Cuts $20B In Funding For Climate Projects

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday canceled $20 billion in congressionally approved grant funding for climate change projects that it had frozen for weeks and criticized as wasteful and out of step with the Trump administration's priorities.

  • March 11, 2025

    Trump, Ontario Back Down After Two-Day Trade Flare-Up

    President Donald Trump called off additional tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum Tuesday after the Ontario government dropped a briefly imposed surcharge on electricity exports, the White House told Law360 on Tuesday evening. 

  • March 11, 2025

    6th Circ. Asks If It Should Duck Enbridge Pipeline Fight

    A Sixth Circuit panel has asked if it should pause or reject altogether Enbridge Energy LP's lawsuit challenging Michigan's efforts to shutter a pipeline because of a pending state court case, requesting briefs ahead of oral arguments next week.

  • March 11, 2025

    Logistics Co. Tells Texas Justices Attys Undercut Rail Deal

    An energy logistics company has told the Texas Supreme Court that lawyers who allegedly helped undermine a business deal shouldn't get to skate out of a legal malpractice lawsuit, arguing in a Monday petition the case belongs before a jury.

  • March 11, 2025

    Russia Says Guinea Ruling Backs Dismissal In $5B Award Suit

    A recent D.C. federal court decision supports the Russian Federation's bid to dismiss an arbitration enforcement action stemming from a tax dispute with Yukos Capital Ltd., Russia told the same court.

  • March 11, 2025

    Trump Taps DOJ Vet To Serve As Energy Dept.'s Top Lawyer

    President Donald Trump has nominated a Winston & Strawn LLP partner, who formerly led the U.S. Department of Justice's Environment and Natural Resources Division during Trump's previous term, to serve as the U.S. Department of Energy's general counsel.

  • March 11, 2025

    Groups Say EPA Must Regulate Phosphate Mining Waste

    The Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club and others have called on the D.C. Circuit to order the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate radioactive waste from phosphate mining and fertilizer production, which are currently excluded from federal regulation.

  • March 11, 2025

    Conservationists Sue FWS Over 'Blanket' Species Rule

    Two conservation groups are suing the U.S. Department of the Interior in Montana federal court over an Endangered Species Act rule they say illegally gives the government power to indiscriminately restrict landowners' use of their property.

  • March 11, 2025

    FERC Can't Defend Its Enforcement Powers, Energy Co. Says

    An energy efficiency aggregator insists that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission doesn't have the authority to pursue a market manipulation case against it, telling a North Carolina federal judge that just because it can contest a penalty in court doesn't mean its constitutional rights haven't been violated.

  • March 11, 2025

    NYC Workers Can't Revive Fossil Fuel Divestment Challenge

    A New York state appeals court refused Tuesday to reopen a lawsuit claiming several New York City pension plans unlawfully put politics over municipal employees' financial needs by divesting $3.9 billion from fossil fuels, backing a trial court's determination that the workers hadn't shown their benefits were affected.

  • March 11, 2025

    Colo. Justices Uneasy About Reach Of Xcel's Immunity Claim

    Colorado's justices were concerned Tuesday about the potentially far-reaching consequences of Xcel Energy's claim that a regulatory tariff limits its liability from a man's personal injury claim, with one justice asking if it would be a "severe derogation of common law" for regulators to grant the utility such broad immunity.

  • March 11, 2025

    5th Circ. Upholds Exxon's Win In Pension Payout Dispute

    A former Exxon employee's claim that the company failed to pay his entire pension fund is preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, the Fifth Circuit ruled, keeping in place the company's win in Louisiana federal court.

Expert Analysis

  • Navigating The Trump Enviro Rollback And Its Consequences

    Author Photo

    The Trump administration's rapid push for environmental deregulation will lead to both opportunities and challenges, requiring companies to adopt strategic approaches to a complex, unpredictable legal environment in which federal rollbacks are countered by increased enforcement by states, and risks of citizen litigation may be heightened, say attorneys at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • 4 Do's And Don'ts For Trial Lawyers Using Generative AI

    Author Photo

    Trial attorneys who use artificial intelligence tools should review a few key reminders, from the likelihood that prompts are discoverable to the rapid evolution of court rules, to safeguard against embarrassing missteps, says Nate Sabri at Perkins Coie.

  • Defense Strategies For Politically Charged Prosecutions

    Author Photo

    Politically charged prosecutions have captured the headlines in recent years, providing lessons for defense counsel on how to navigate the distinct challenges, and seize the unique opportunities, such cases present, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • Series

    Competitive Weightlifting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    The parallels between the core principles required for competitive weightlifting and practicing law have helped me to excel in both endeavors, with each holding important lessons about discipline, dedication, drive and failure, says Damien Bielli at VF Law.

  • 8 Ways Cos. Can Prep For Termination Of Their Enviro Grants

    Author Photo

    The federal government appears to be reviewing energy- and infrastructure-related grants and potentially terminating grants inconsistent with the Trump administration's stated policy goals, and attorneys at DLA Piper provide eight steps that recipients of grants should consider taking in the interim.

  • The Syria Sanctions Dilemma Facing Trump Administration

    Author Photo

    Parties looking to engage in transactions involving Syria will be watching the expiration of General License 24 in July, when the Trump administration will need to decide whether to make significant changes to the Syrian sanctions program and reconsider the de facto government's status as a foreign terrorist organization, says Charlie Lyons at Ferrari & Associates.

  • How Trump EPA Could Fix Carbon Combustion Residuals Rule

    Author Photo

    The Trump administration is likely targeting the recently adopted carbon combustion residual rule, especially since it imposes very stringent, detailed and expedited requirements on coal power plants — but even if the rule is not vacated entirely, there are measures that could greatly reduce its regulatory burden, says Stephen Jones at Post & Schell.

  • Nippon Order Tests Gov't Control Over Foreign Investments

    Author Photo

    The U.S. government is primarily interested in restraining foreign transactions involving countries of concern, but former President Joe Biden’s January order blocking the merger of Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel shows that all foreign direct investments are under the federal government’s microscope, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

  • Opinion

    Inconsistent Injury-In-Fact Rules Hinder Federal Practice

    Author Photo

    A recent Third Circuit decision, contradicting a previous ruling about whether consumers of contaminated products have suffered an injury in fact, illustrates the deep confusion this U.S. Supreme Court standard creates among federal judges and practitioners, who deserve a simpler method of determining which cases have federal standing, says Eric Dwoskin at Dwoskin Wasdin.

  • How Trump Orders Roll Back Energy Efficiency Mandates

    Author Photo

    President Donald Trump's first-day executive orders — including a freeze on administrative rules, an order to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, and a directive to broaden consumers' appliance choices — have shifted federal policy on energy efficiency, and bring new considerations for companies engaging with the U.S. Department of Energy, say attorneys at HWG.

  • In-House Counsel Pointers For Preserving Atty-Client Privilege

    Author Photo

    Several recent rulings illustrate the challenges in-house counsel can face when attempting to preserve attorney-client privilege, but a few best practices can help safeguard communications and effectively assert the privilege in an increasingly scrutinized corporate environment, says Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics.

  • What Banks Need To Know About Trump's Executive Orders

    Author Photo

    While the numerous executive orders and memos from the last few weeks don't touch on many of the issues the banking industry expected the Trump administration to address, banks still need to pay attention to the flurry of orders from strategic, compliance and operational perspectives, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Emerging Energy Trends Reflect Shifting Political Landscape

    Author Photo

    As the Trump administration settles in, some emerging energy industry trends, like expanded support for fossil fuel production, are right off of its wish list — while others, like the popularity of Inflation Reduction Act energy tax credits, and bipartisan support for carbon capture, reflect more complex political realities, say attorneys at Greenberg Traurig.

  • As EPA Backs Down, Expect Enviros To Step Up Citizen Suits

    Author Photo

    As President Donald Trump's U.S. Environmental Protection Agency draws down federal enforcement efforts, environmental groups will step into the void and file citizen suits — so companies should focus on compliance efforts, stay savvy about emerging analytical and monitoring methods, and maintain good relations with neighbors, say attorneys at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • How Criminal Enforcement Of Trump Tariffs May Work

    Author Photo

    While tariff enforcement has traditionally been handled as a civil matter, tariffs are central to President Donald Trump's broader economic, immigration and national security agendas — making it likely that the U.S. Department of Justice will be tasked with criminal enforcement of tariff evasion, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Energy archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!