Environmental

  • January 30, 2025

    Big Ass Fans Agrees To Fine Over COVID-19 Filtering Claims

    Fan maker Big Ass Fans has agreed to pay nearly half a million dollars in penalties and restitution to resolve false advertising claims related to ceiling fan attachments it marketed during the COVID-19 pandemic as being able to kill over 99% of pathogens within an hour.

  • January 30, 2025

    FERC Says Pacific NW Pipeline Approval Was By The Book

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is defending its approval of a controversial TC Energy Corp. pipeline expansion project in the Pacific Northwest, telling the Fifth Circuit it reasonably determined that the project was needed and adequately reviewed its environmental impacts.

  • January 30, 2025

    Kirkland-Led Oil And Gas Producer Infinity Prices $265M IPO

    Oil and gas producer Infinity Natural Resources priced a $265 million initial public offering Thursday within its range, represented by Kirkland & Ellis LLP and underwriters counsel Latham & Watkins LLP, adding to a recent wave of energy-related IPOs.

  • January 30, 2025

    Buddhist Temple Urges Halt To Army Corps' Everglades Plan

    A Buddhist temple on Thursday urged a Florida federal court to temporarily halt a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' restoration project in the Everglades set to begin next week, saying the impacts of construction will deter visitors to the temple and disrupt its First Amendment right to religious freedom.

  • January 30, 2025

    Peruvians Tell High Court Smelter Lawsuit Should Proceed

    Peruvian nationals suing U.S. billionaire Ira Rennert's The Renco Group Inc. for allegedly poisoning them with toxic chemicals from a smelting and refining complex in a rural part of the country are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to let their litigation move forward.

  • January 30, 2025

    1st Circ. Restores Endangered Whale's Cape Cod Protections

    The First Circuit on Thursday upheld the National Marine Fisheries Service's decision to seasonally ban some lobster and crab fishing equipment near Cape Cod in order to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales.

  • January 30, 2025

    Agency In NJ Town Loses Retrial Bid In $26M Land-Taking Fight

    A New Jersey federal judge has denied a redevelopment agency's bid for a new trial in a land-taking battle after a jury determined it should pay $25.6 million for a 22-acre former Michelin Tire & Rubber Co. factory, ruling that it failed to meet the high bar set to overturn a verdict.

  • January 30, 2025

    EPA Says Okla. Must Give Tribes Say In Enviro Policies

    Oklahoma must work with its tribal nations in administering dozens of environmental polices, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has said in a decision modifying a previous order that allowed the Sooner State full regulatory authority over the majority of Indian Country.

  • January 30, 2025

    Environmental Group Of The Year: Gibson Dunn

    Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP's environmental practice handled a particularly diverse array of cases last year, including successfully defending eBay against U.S. Department of Justice and Environmental Protection Agency allegations that it violated three environmental statutes via harmful products sold using its platform, earning the team a spot among the 2024 Law360 Environmental Groups of the Year.

  • January 30, 2025

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: Sanctions Miss, Philip Morris Refund

    In the second half of January, the North Carolina Business Court tussled with sanctions against a biogas company, heard claims an insurer tried to deliberately embarrass Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP and ordered an $11 million tax refund for Philip Morris.

  • January 30, 2025

    Energy Group Urges UK To Link To EU's Carbon-Tax Measure

    The U.K. government should link to the European Union's Emissions Trading System to mitigate the impact of carbon border taxes on businesses in Northern Ireland, an energy industry group said.

  • January 29, 2025

    Ga. Judge Won't Free Wildlife Rehab From Animal Care Suit

    A Georgia federal judge on Tuesday refused to free Noah's Ark Animal Rehabilitation Center and Sanctuary or the chair of its board of directors from an Ohio-based nonprofit's suit alleging the center failed to properly care for its wildlife.

  • January 29, 2025

    Mich. Judge Doubts Discovery Dispute Should DQ Firm

    A Michigan federal judge on Wednesday said a law firm's alleged "bad behavior" doesn't necessarily mean it can't represent a former CEO of a solar energy company, telling residents who sought to disqualify the firm because of a supposed conflict that their complaints may be better dealt with through discovery motions.

  • January 29, 2025

    Senate Banking Committee Forms NFIP Working Group

    With the National Flood Insurance Program's authorization set to expire in March, the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking has formed a working group to reform the program and work toward long-term reauthorization, a press release from committee chairman and South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott said.

  • January 29, 2025

    New DOT Chief Orders Fuel Economy Standards Redo

    U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy has ordered the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to retool its "extraordinarily stringent" vehicle fuel economy standards, immediately diving into President Donald Trump's rollback of Biden-era policies aimed at bolstering electric vehicles.

  • January 29, 2025

    Senate Confirms Former Rep. Lee Zeldin To Lead EPA

    The U.S. Senate on Wednesday confirmed former New York congressman Lee Zeldin to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

  • January 29, 2025

    EPA Can't Invoke Immunity In Flint Water Crisis Suit

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is not entitled to a government immunity defense in a lawsuit filed by Flint, Michigan, residents who claim it failed to take proper action during a lead-tainted drinking water crisis, a federal judge has said.

  • January 29, 2025

    Nonprofits Back NC Officials In Animal Waste Permit Suit

    After multiple lower state courts went back and forth on whether certain provisions laid out in a trio of farm animal waste system permits should have been adopted as official state rules, multiple advocacy groups urged the Tar Heel State justices to let them side with the government as they review the issue.

  • January 29, 2025

    4 Questions About Trump's Federal Worker Resignation Policy

    President Donald Trump’s offer of letting federal workers resign with several months of paid administrative leave raises questions about its legality and whether workers will actually get paid, attorneys said. Here, Law360 explores four questions that stem from the policy.

  • January 29, 2025

    2nd Circ. Rejects NY Tribe's Eel Fishing Regs Challenge

    The Second Circuit has upheld a lower court's rejection of the Unkechaug Indian Nation's challenge to New York State Department of Environmental Conservation regulations on eel harvests, finding that an agreement dating back to 1676 is not federal law preempting state fishing regulations.

  • January 29, 2025

    Environmental Group Of The Year: Hunton

    Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP secured court victories for Marathon Petroleum in a series of climate change lawsuits around the country, helped a range of industry groups challenge federal regulations and negotiated a landmark $57 million settlement on behalf of an Exelon subsidiary, earning the firm a spot among the 2024 Law360 Environmental Groups of the Year.

  • January 29, 2025

    Orrick Adds Bradley Arant Energy Regulatory Pro In DC

    Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP has grown its energy capabilities in the nation's capital with the addition of an attorney from Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP.

  • January 29, 2025

    Tribal Leaders Call Funding Freeze A 'Step In Wrong Direction'

    Native American nonprofit groups and tribal leaders are weighing the effects of the Trump administration's possible federal funding freeze, calling the president's directive, which was revoked on Wednesday, shocking and vowing to bring legal action if necessary to protect Indian Country and the nation's Indigenous citizens.

  • January 29, 2025

    $7.8B ChampionX Deal Gets Added Scrutiny Across The Pond

    SLB's path to closing its proposed $7.8 billion acquisition of ChampionX got a little trickier Wednesday as the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority launched a formal investigation into a deal that is also under the scrutiny of U.S. regulators. 

  • January 29, 2025

    White House Rescinds Trump's Spending Freeze

    The White House on Wednesday rescinded a directive freezing federal funding, saying it wants to end litigation and confusion, but said the move will not end a review of spending to ensure compliance with a series of executive orders by the president.

Expert Analysis

  • How BIS' Rule Seeks To Encourage More Voluntary Disclosure

    Author Photo

    Updated incentives, penalties and enforcement resources in the Bureau of Industry and Security's recently published final rule revising the Export Administration Regulations should help companies decide how to implement export control compliance programs and whether to disclose possible violations, say attorneys at Freshfields.

  • 8 Childhood Lessons That Can Help You Be A Better Attorney

    Author Photo

    A new school year is underway, marking a fitting time for attorneys to reflect on some fundamental life lessons from early childhood that offer a framework for problems that no legal textbook can solve, say Chris Gismondi and Chris Campbell at DLA Piper.

  • Navigating Complex Regulatory Terrain Amid State AG Races

    Author Photo

    This year's 10 attorney general elections could usher in a wave of new enforcement priorities and regulatory uncertainty, but companies can stay ahead of the shifts by building strong relationships with AG offices, participating in industry coalitions and more, say Ketan Bhirud and Dustin McDaniel at Cozen O’Connor.

  • How The 2025 Tax Policy Debate Will Affect The Energy Sector

    Author Photo

    Regardless of the outcome of the upcoming U.S. election, 2025 will bring a major tax policy debate that could affect the energy sector more than any other part of the economy — so stakeholders who could be affected should be engaging now to make sure they understand the stakes, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.

  • Sublimit And Policy Interpretation Lessons From Amtrak Case

    Author Photo

    The recently settled dispute between Amtrak and its insurers over sublimit coverage illustrates that parties with unclear manuscript policies may wish to avoid litigation in favor of settlement — as the New York federal court declined to decide the case by applying prior term interpretations, says Laura Maletta at Chartwell Law.

  • 3rd Circ. Hertz Ruling Highlights Flawed Bankruptcy Theory

    Author Photo

    The Third Circuit, in its recent Hertz bankruptcy decision, became the latest appeals court to hold that noteholders were entitled to interest before shareholders under the absolute priority rule, but risked going astray by invoking the flawed theory of code impairment, say Matthew McGill and David Casazza at Gibson Dunn.

  • Opinion

    This Election, We Need To Talk About Court Process

    Author Photo

    In recent decades, the U.S. Supreme Court has markedly transformed judicial processes — from summary judgment standards to notice pleadings — which has, in turn, affected individuals’ substantive rights, and we need to consider how the upcoming presidential election may continue this pattern, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • The Complex Challenges Facing Sustainable Food Packaging

    Author Photo

    More and more states are requiring recycled content to be used in product packaging, creating complex technological and regulatory considerations for manufacturers who must also comply with federal food safety requirements, say Peter Coneski and Natalie Rainer at K&L Gates.

  • Int'l Agreements Are Key For Safe Nuclear Waste Disposal

    Author Photo

    By replacing fossil fuels, nuclear energy has the potential to offer a major contribution to the global fight against climate change — but ensuring that nuclear power is safe and sustainable will require binding, multinational agreements for safe nuclear waste disposal, say Ryan Schermerhorn and Christopher Zahn at Marshall Gerstein.

  • Series

    Playing Diplomacy Makes Us Better Lawyers

    Author Photo

    Similar to the practice of law, the rules of Diplomacy — a strategic board game set in pre-World War I Europe — are neither concise nor without ambiguity, and weekly gameplay with our colleagues has revealed the game's practical applications to our work as attorneys, say Jason Osborn and Ben Bevilacqua at Winston & Strawn.

  • How Multifamily Property Owners Can Plan For The EV Future

    Author Photo

    As the electric vehicle market expands, and federal and state incentives and mandates intended to promote EV use come into effect, owners and operators of multifamily residential properties should be prepared to meet the growing demand for onsite EV charging infrastructure, say Sydney Tucker and Andreas Wokutch at Frost Brown.

  • New Law May Move Calif. Toward Fashion Sustainability

    Author Photo

    California’s recently signed Responsible Textile Recovery Act seeks to increase sustainability innovation in the fashion industry, but it could also create compliance hurdles for brands, especially smaller fashion houses that do not have ample resources, say Warren Koshofer and Maggie Franz at Michelman & Robinson.

  • Conn. Court Split May Lead To Vertical Forum Shopping

    Author Photo

    As shown by a recent ruling in State v. Exxon Mobil, Connecticut state and federal courts are split on personal jurisdiction, and until the Connecticut Supreme Court steps in, parties may be incentivized to forum shop, causing foreign entities to endure costly litigation and uncertain liability, says Matthew Gibbons at Shipman & Goodwin.

  • Mental Health First Aid: A Brief Primer For Attorneys

    Author Photo

    Amid a growing body of research finding that attorneys face higher rates of mental illness than the general population, firms should consider setting up mental health first aid training programs to help lawyers assess mental health challenges in their colleagues and intervene with compassion, say psychologists Shawn Healy and Tracey Meyers.

  • Enviro Policy Trends That Will Continue Beyond The Election

    Author Photo

    Come October in a presidential election year, the policy world feels like a winner-take-all scenario, with the outcome of the vote determining how or even whether we are regulated — but there are several key ongoing trends that will continue to drive environmental regulation regardless of the election results, say J. Michael Showalter and Samuel Rasche at ArentFox Schiff.

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!