Environmental

  • November 04, 2024

    NC Commission Signs Off On Duke Energy Resource Plan

    The North Carolina Utilities Commission has signed off on Duke Energy's latest resource plan, with one nonprofit lamenting that the order gives the utility giant "essentially everything it wanted."

  • November 04, 2024

    Post-Chevron, DC Circ. Wrestles With At-Sea Monitoring Rule

    A D.C. Circuit panel on Monday revisited a challenge to federal regulations requiring fishermen to fund the cost of compliance monitors aboard their ships, grappling with how to interpret the federal statute underlying the regulations following the demise of the Chevron deference.

  • November 04, 2024

    Monsanto Can't Keep Expert PCB Estimates From Seattle Jury

    A Washington state judge has slapped down Monsanto's bid to stop a plaintiffs' expert from sharing chemical exposure opinions with jurors in a Seattle PCB poisoning tort, saying on Monday that the company's stance that the testimony is "junk science" relies on an outdated record in a related Court of Appeals case.

  • November 04, 2024

    FERC, NJ Conservation Orgs Battle Over Pipeline Rehearing

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is clashing with a host of conservation groups and the New Jersey Division of the Rate Counsel over whether the D.C. Circuit should reconsider a panel decision that vacated the agency's approval for a natural gas pipeline expansion on the East Coast.

  • November 04, 2024

    Hurricane Zeta MDL Judge Orders Mediation Amid DQ Battle

    A Houston judge overseeing a multidistrict litigation created to handle claims from crew members who say they were injured while weathering Hurricane Zeta on a Transocean drilling rig ordered the parties to mediation Friday in the midst of a bitter disqualification battle between their feuding firms.

  • November 04, 2024

    Shell Slips Negligence Claim In Pa. Nuisance Lawsuit

    Neighbors of Shell Chemical Appalachia's Western Pennsylvania ethylene cracker plant will need to be more specific about dust and pollution affecting their homes if they want to revive a negligence claim that a federal court struck from a proposed class action Monday.

  • November 04, 2024

    DC Circ. Won't Block Coal Ash Rule During Challenge

    The D.C. Circuit has denied East Kentucky Power Cooperative Inc.'s effort to block the implementation of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule that strengthened the federal regulations requiring safe management of coal ash dumped at operating and retired power plants.

  • November 04, 2024

    Class Cert. Sought In Ga. Man's 'Forever Chemicals' Suit

    A Georgia man who lives near a Mount Vernon Mills textile plant asked a federal judge on Friday to certify two classes of neighbors who want to hold the manufacturers of so-called "forever chemicals" responsible for the alleged pollution of city drinking water.

  • November 04, 2024

    Michigan County Fights To Keep Radioactive Waste Out

    Wayne County urged a Michigan federal judge to keep in place an order barring a local landfill from accepting deliveries of radioactive waste from the Manhattan Project, arguing the surrounding communities' and environmental health could suffer for "billions of years."  

  • November 04, 2024

    Texas Border Buoy Trial Delayed After En Banc Ruling

    An Austin federal judge paused an impending bench trial between the Biden administration and the state of Texas over a 1,000-foot buoy barrier in the Rio Grande, reopening discovery Monday in the wake of an en banc circuit court opinion that slammed the judge for ordering the removal of the buoys.

  • November 04, 2024

    UAE Grocery Giant Lulu Seeks $1.7B IPO As Demand Grows

    United Arab Emirates grocery chain Lulu Retail Holdings PLC on Monday unveiled additional investment in an upsized initial public offering that could net $1.7 billion, potentially making it the largest UAE listing this year, guided by three law firms.

  • November 04, 2024

    Texas Rips Feds' 5th Circ. Bid To Revive Highway GHG Rule

    Texas is telling the Fifth Circuit there's no reason to disturb a district court's decision to vacate a Federal Highway Administration rule that called on states to set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from federally funded highway projects.

  • November 04, 2024

    US IPO Activity Hits Standstill As Election Takes Center Stage

    U.S. initial public offerings have screeched to a halt amid peak election season, and dealmakers expect new listings to largely remain iced until next year as market participants sort out ramifications of Tuesday's presidential and congressional contests.

  • November 04, 2024

    Supreme Court Won't Hear Apache's Mining Regs Dispute

    The U.S. Supreme Court will let stand a ruling that sides with a state environmental agency's decision to let a copper mining company discharge untreated wastewater into a creek that's considered sacred to an Arizona Indigenous community.

  • November 01, 2024

    DC Circ. Urged To Uphold Veto Of Fla. Dredge Program

    A coalition of environmental groups urged the D.C. Circuit on Friday to uphold a lower court ruling depriving Florida of its authority to issue wetland dredge and fill permits under the Clean Water Act, saying regulators must follow the rigorous laws protecting endangered species.

  • November 01, 2024

    Texas Justice Says Amici Should Get Say In Religion Case

    A Texas Supreme Court justice released a statement Friday saying the court should have granted First Liberty Institute's request for five minutes to argue its position in a case about religious freedom under the Lone Star State's constitution, saying help from an amici would be "sensible and advisable."

  • November 01, 2024

    DC Circ. Questions Enviro Groups On Renewable Fuels Rules

    Judges on the D.C. Circuit on Friday morning pressed attorneys for environmental groups challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2023-2025 renewable fuel standards, questioning their claims that the federal government didn't do enough to assess the standards' potential impacts on water quality and certain species.

  • November 01, 2024

    FEMA Finalizes Rule Allowing Monthly NFIP Bill Payments

    National Flood Insurance Program policyholders will be able to pay their premiums on a monthly basis starting next year, under a rule finalized Friday that is meant to incentivize greater and continued participation in the nation's largest provider of flood insurance.

  • November 01, 2024

    DOI Invests $82M For Clean Drinking Water Projects For Tribes

    The U.S. Department of the Interior unveiled a nearly $82 million investment for 23 projects aimed at bringing clean, safe drinking water to Tribal communities in the Western United States.

  • November 01, 2024

    Enviro Groups, Tribes Sue Over Nev. Lithium Mine Approval

    Environmental and tribal groups slapped the U.S. Department of the Interior with a complaint in Nevada federal court seeking to upend the agency's authorization of the Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Mine, arguing the project will drive a rare wildflower into extinction.

  • November 01, 2024

    Mich. AG Hits Paper Company With PFAS Discharge Suit

    Michigan's attorney general has hit Ox Paperboard WP LCC and one of its mills with a state court suit alleging that they have repeatedly discharged "forever chemical"-contaminated wastewater into the White Pigeon River.

  • November 01, 2024

    Wash. Man Gets 4 Years For Killing And Selling Eagles

    A Washington man who conspired to hunt and kill thousands of bald and golden eagles and hawks on a Montana reservation to sell on the black market will serve nearly four years in federal prison following a plea agreement in which prosecutors dropped nearly a dozen charges.

  • November 01, 2024

    Oil Group, Enviro Orgs Clash Over Offshore Drilling Plan

    Environmental groups and the American Petroleum Institute filed sparring briefs in an appeal before the D.C. Circuit over the U.S. Department of the Interior's 2024-2029 offshore oil and gas leasing program, each arguing that the agency wasn't legally obligated to satisfy the other's demands.

  • November 01, 2024

    FERC In Position To Ride Out Any Election Day Upheaval

    The ongoing work of a reloaded Federal Energy Regulatory Commission isn't likely to be disturbed by a new president in the White House next year, although FERC watchers say concerns that a Trump administration could challenge the agency's historic independence can't be brushed off.

  • November 01, 2024

    2024 Election Could Be Crossroads For Clean Energy Funding

    Election Day will present a multibillion-dollar fork in the road for the energy industry and its reliance on the federal government to help fund its decarbonization efforts, energy attorneys say.

Expert Analysis

  • How Methods Are Evolving In Textualist Interpretations

    Author Photo

    Textualists at the U.S. Supreme Court are increasingly considering new methods such as corpus linguistics and surveys to evaluate what a statute's text communicates to an ordinary reader, while lower courts even mull large language models like ChatGPT as supplements, says Kevin Tobia at Georgetown Law.

  • 5 Ways To Confront Courtroom Technology Challenges

    Author Photo

    Recent cybersecurity incidents highlight the vulnerabilities of our reliance on digital infrastructure, meaning attorneys must be prepared to navigate technological obstacles inside the courtroom, including those related to data security, presentation hardware, video playback and more, says Adam Bloomberg at IMS Legal Strategies.

  • ESA Ruling May Jeopardize Gulf Of Mexico Drilling Operations

    Author Photo

    A Maryland federal court's recent decision in Sierra Club v. National Marine Fisheries Service, vacating key Endangered Species Act analyses of oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico, may create a gap in guidance that could expose operators to enforcement risk and even criminal liability, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Why Attorneys Should Consider Community Leadership Roles

    Author Photo

    Volunteering and nonprofit board service are complementary to, but distinct from, traditional pro bono work, and taking on these community leadership roles can produce dividends for lawyers, their firms and the nonprofit causes they support, says Katie Beacham at Kilpatrick.

  • Firms Must Offer A Trifecta Of Services In Post-Chevron World

    Author Photo

    After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision overturning Chevron deference, law firms will need to integrate litigation, lobbying and communications functions to keep up with the ramifications of the ruling and provide adequate counsel quickly, says Neil Hare at Dentons.

  • 5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond

    Author Photo

    As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.

  • Opinion

    Portland's Gross Receipts Tax Oversteps City's Authority

    Author Photo

    Recent measures by Portland, Oregon, that expand the voter-approved scope of the Clean Energy Surcharge on certain retail sales eviscerate the common meaning of the word "retail" and exceed the city's chartered authority to levy tax, say Nikki Dobay at Greenberg Traurig and Jeff Newgard at Peak Policy.

  • Series

    After Chevron: SEC Climate And ESG Rules Likely Doomed

    Author Photo

    Under the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Loper Bright, without agency deference, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate disclosure and environmental, social and governance rules would likely be found lacking in statutory support and vacated by the courts, says Justin Chretien at Carlton Fields.

  • When Trauma Colors Testimony: How To Help Witnesses

    Author Photo

    As stress-related mental health issues continue to rise, trial attorneys must become familiar with a few key trauma-informed strategies to help witnesses get back on track — leaning in to the counselor aspect of their vocations, say Ava Hernández and Steve Wood at Courtroom Sciences.

  • Series

    Being An Opera Singer Made Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    My journey from the stage to the courtroom has shown that the skills I honed as an opera singer – punctuality, memorization, creativity and more – have all played a vital role in my success as an attorney, says Gerard D'Emilio at GableGotwals.

  • Navigating The Uncertain Landscape Of Solar Tariffs

    Author Photo

    Solar cell and module manufacturers, exporters and importers must navigate an uncertain compliance landscape, given ongoing challenges to U.S. Department of Commerce antidumping and countervailing duty determinations, which have been mounted both by U.S. and non-U.S. manufacturers, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Amid SEC Rule Limbo, US Cos. Subject To ESG Regs In EU

    Author Photo

    Though the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is facing legal challenges to its climate-disclosure rulemaking, the implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive in the European Union will force U.S. companies to comply with exactly the kinds of ESG disclosures that are not yet mandated in the U.S., say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • How Law Firms Can Avoid 'Collaboration Drag'

    Author Photo

    Law firm decision making can be stifled by “collaboration drag” — characterized by too many pointless meetings, too much peer feedback and too little dissent — but a few strategies can help stakeholders improve decision-making processes and build consensus, says Steve Groom at Miles Mediation.

  • When The Supreme Court Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade

    Author Photo

    Instead of grousing about the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions overturning long-standing precedents, attorneys should look to history for examples of how enterprising legal minds molded difficult decisions to their advantage, and figure out how to work with the cards they’ve been dealt, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Opinion

    Litigation Funding Disclosure Key To Open, Impartial Process

    Author Photo

    Blanket investor and funding agreement disclosures should be required in all civil cases where the investor has a financial interest in the outcome in order to address issues ranging from potential conflicts of interest to national security concerns, says Bob Goodlatte, former U.S. House Representative for Virginia.

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 Environmental 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!