Environmental

  • October 30, 2024

    Connecticut Water Users Amend Utility PFAS Class Action

    A proposed class of Connecticut consumers filed an amended complaint for a suit alleging a water utility knowingly sold water containing unhealthy levels of "forever chemicals" without installing treatment equipment that could have prevented the contamination from reaching people.

  • October 30, 2024

    MVP: Napoli Shkolnik's Paul Napoli

    Paul Napoli of Napoli Shkolnik LLP secured four massive settlements with 3M, Tyco Fire Products, DuPont de Nemours and BASF Corp. ranging from $316.5 million to $12.5 billion on behalf of public water systems impacted by "forever chemical" contamination, earning him a spot as one of the 2024 Law360 Environmental MVPs.

  • October 30, 2024

    Cleveland-Cliffs Gets Final Approval For $2.5B Stelco Deal

    Ohio steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. said Wednesday it has received the Canadian regulatory approvals needed to complete its planned $2.5 billion acquisition of Canada's Stelco Holdings Inc., slating the deal close for Friday. 

  • October 30, 2024

    Judge Says Attys Asking For Too Much In Hess Wage Deal

    A New York federal judge refused to sign off on a $36,000 deal that would resolve a former oil field worker's suit alleging Hess Corp. failed to pay him overtime, saying the worker's attorneys are requesting too large of a share.

  • October 30, 2024

    KKR, ECP To Plug $50B Into Data Centers, Power Projects

    Private equity firms KKR & Co., advised by Simpson Thacher, and Energy Capital Partners have teamed up to inject $50 billion into building data centers and energy generation projects in a bet on meeting rising demand for infrastructure to support the artificial intelligence boom.

  • October 29, 2024

    Mining Co. Must Hand Over Docs To Tribe In Minn. Land Row

    A Minnesota federal magistrate judge has determined that the vast majority of documents that a Native American tribe is seeking from a mining company in a land exchange dispute must be turned over to the tribe, ruling that discovery sought prior to 2016 is relevant to the case.

  • October 29, 2024

    Williams Cos. Applies To FERC For Transco Expansion

    A Williams Cos. Inc. unit on Monday submitted an application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to expand the Transco natural gas pipeline's capacity in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama — a proposal over which two environmental groups quickly expressed concern.

  • October 29, 2024

    Texas Gov., Oil Groups Urge DC Circ. To Revive LNG Projects

    Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, the American Petroleum Institute, the Lipan Apache Tribe and others are lining up behind liquefied natural gas project backers asking the full D.C. Circuit to review a panel's decision to nix Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approvals for LNG projects on the Texas Gulf Coast.

  • October 29, 2024

    Mining Regs Have World Effect On Tribes, High Court Told

    A chief of an Indigenous Brazilian community is backing an Arizona tribe in its bid to overturn a decision that allows a copper mining company to discharge treated wastewater into a local waterway, telling the Supreme Court that pollution from such operations impacts more than just health around the world.

  • October 29, 2024

    6th Circ. Judge Doubts Airport Funding Made It Federal Agent

    A Sixth Circuit judge on Tuesday said he saw "problems" with a Michigan airport's argument that federal grants had enough requirements to make the airport effectively a federal officer, suggesting it cannot litigate a suit over its PFAS-containing firefighting foam in federal court.

  • October 29, 2024

    PTAB Upholds Solar Co.'s Power Supply Patent

    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has shot down a bid from a German solar energy technology company's U.S. unit to invalidate a competitor's solar power supply patent, the latest blow to the subsidiary in a larger patent fight.

  • October 29, 2024

    DQ'd Zeta Atty Using MDL Info In Other Cases, Plaintiffs Say

    A group of crew members aboard a Transocean drilling rig during Hurricane Zeta asked a Harris County judge Monday to sanction the company and its former law firm, writing that a former attorney has continued to use information he obtained while working on the case despite being disqualified in 2023.

  • October 29, 2024

    Texas Judge Rejects Early Win In Water Pollution Dispute

    A Texas federal judge denied on Tuesday an insurer's bid for an early win in its lawsuit against a water supply company accused of providing contaminated water to Cameron County residents, despite the insurer's argument that pollution exclusions in multiple policies bar coverage for the underlying claims.

  • October 29, 2024

    6th Circ. Judge Rejects Flint Comparison In Benton Harbor

    A Sixth Circuit judge asked during oral arguments Tuesday if Michigan's government could have done more to monitor the response to lead contamination in a city's water supply, as another judge seemed to doubt that the allegations against the state rose to the level of constitutional violations.

  • October 29, 2024

    ND Riverbed Fight Has Been Festering For 50 Years, Court Told

    A Native American tribe and the U.S. Department of the Interior are asking a federal court to deny a more than yearlong extension request by North Dakota to respond to a bid for a judgment that declares the state has no mineral rights beneath a portion of the Missouri River.

  • October 29, 2024

    BOEM Holds Gulf Of Maine Wind Lease Sale

    An offshore wind lease sale held Tuesday for the Gulf of Maine saw two provisional winners for four lease areas with the potential to power some 2.3 million homes, according to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

  • October 29, 2024

    FERC Botched Pacific NW Pipeline Approval, 5th Circ. Told

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission was wrong to approve a controversial TC Energy Corp. pipeline expansion project in the Pacific Northwest, Washington and Oregon officials and environmental groups told the Fifth Circuit.

  • October 29, 2024

    NJ Recycler, Insurer Settle Suit Over Millions In Fire Damage

    A New Jersey recycling center has agreed to drop its suit over its insurer's alleged refusal to cover millions in losses stemming from an April 2023 fire at its facility, according to court documents.

  • October 29, 2024

    MVP: Beveridge & Diamond's Parker Moore

    Parker Moore of Beveridge & Diamond PC, who helped advance the fiercely contested Mountain Valley Pipeline and settled litigation against a leading supplier of endotoxin testing products, is now helping defend tiremakers in litigation over the rubber additive 6PPD, earning him a spot as one of the 2024 Law360 Environmental MVPs.

  • October 28, 2024

    Hershey's 'Bubble Yum' Contains PFAS, Consumer Alleges

    The existence of "forever chemicals" in The Hershey Co.'s Bubble Yum brand bubblegum undermines the multinational candy company's commitment to transparency about the ingredients in its products, a new proposed false advertising class action filed in California state court alleges.

  • October 28, 2024

    Sterigenics Says Residents Can't Tie Harms To Ethylene Oxide

    Medical sterilization company Sterigenics US LLC and its parent, Sotera Health LLC, are asking a Georgia state judge to exclude expert testimony put forward by Peach State residents alleging their ethylene oxide emissions harmed them, and to dismiss the residents' claims against them.

  • October 28, 2024

    Texas Sues Biden Admin Over Mussels' Endangered Status

    Texas sued the U.S. Department of the Interior over a recent federal classification naming several central-Texas mussel species as endangered or threatened, telling a Texas federal court Monday that the agencies failed to consider current conservation efforts and economic impacts of the new rule.

  • October 28, 2024

    Flint Bellwether Delayed On Eve Of Trial, Again

    A Michigan federal judge delayed Monday a bellwether trial set to determine if a water engineering firm was professionally negligent for its role in the Flint water crisis one day before jury selection was scheduled to begin and without explanation. 

  • October 28, 2024

    Pennsylvania Judge Yanks Delaware River Port Approvals

    A Pennsylvania federal judge ruled Monday that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers "arbitrarily and capriciously departed from its own procedures" in authorizing plans for a new port on the Delaware River in Delaware, downriver from Philadelphia, ordering the agency to conduct a closer review of the project. 

  • October 28, 2024

    Fla. Condo Sues Flood Insurer Over Undervalued Storm Claim

    A Florida condominium association damaged by a 2022 hurricane has alleged its insurance company failed to provide adequate compensation under the terms of a $13 million policy in accordance with its mandate with the National Flood Insurance Program.

Expert Analysis

  • ESA Ruling May Jeopardize Gulf Of Mexico Drilling Operations

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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'

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    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

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    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

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    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.

  • The Ethics of Using Generative AI In Environmental Law

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    The rapid emergence of generative artificial intelligence tools is challenging environmental lawyers, consultants and government agencies to determine when and how these tools can be responsibly, ethically and productively integrated into their practices to streamline research, predictive analytics and regulatory compliance, say Ahlia Bethea and Pamela Esterman at Sive Paget.

  • Carbon Offset Case A Win For CFTC Enviro Fraud Task Force

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    An Illinois federal court's decision in Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Ikkurty — earning the CFTC a sizeable monetary award that will likely incentivize similar enforcement pursuit — shows the impact of the commission's Environmental Fraud Task Force, say attorneys at Steptoe.

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