Environmental

  • October 21, 2024

    Mike Pence Supports US Steel-Nippon, Calls Critiques 'Bogus'

    Former Vice President Mike Pence has come out in support of Nippon Steel's planned $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel, stating that Nippon will inject essential funding into the ailing Pennsylvania-based steelmaker while helping to fend off China and Russia's growing levels of global steel production. 

  • October 21, 2024

    High Court Will Review Clean Air Act Jurisdiction Cases

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to review Tenth Circuit and Fifth Circuit rulings that reached different conclusions about whether legal challenges to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency air pollution rules belong in the D.C. Circuit.

  • October 18, 2024

    Law360 MVP Awards Go To Top Attys From 74 Firms

    The attorneys chosen as Law360's 2024 MVPs have distinguished themselves from their peers by securing hard-earned successes in high-stakes litigation, complex global matters and record-breaking deals.

  • October 18, 2024

    Colo. County, Enviros Back DC Ruling In High Court Rail Fight

    Conservation groups and a Colorado county are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm a D.C. Circuit ruling that overturned federal approval of a rail project proposed to haul crude oil out of Utah's Uinta Basin, as justices set arguments for a challenge to that ruling for Dec. 10.

  • October 18, 2024

    FWS Can't Block Cactus Rule Records Release, Group Says

    A Colorado conservation group claims that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has failed to turn over public records related to a proposed rule to remove a cactus species from its list of threatened and endangered species.

  • October 18, 2024

    States, Public Health Groups Defend EPA Power Plant Rule

    A group of 21 states and the District of Columbia called on the D.C. Circuit on Friday to reject myriad challengers' attempts to unravel the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's plan to control greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.

  • October 18, 2024

    5th Circ. Partially Upholds $2M Win In Hurricane Coverage Suit

    The Fifth Circuit has upheld in part a Louisiana church's more than $2 million judgment win against an insurer that was accused of not paying enough for the church's hurricane damage claims.

  • October 18, 2024

    Judge Blasts Feds' 'Utter Failure' To Quantify Climate Impact

    A Colorado federal judge has ruled the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated the Clean Water Act and other federal guidelines in approving a dredging permit for a Denver dam project, calling out the agency's "utter failure" to study the impacts of climate change and alternatives that would avoid impacting wetlands.

  • October 18, 2024

    Natural Gas Producer Will Pay $9.4M For Excess Air Pollution

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and New Mexico Environment Department have reached a $9.4 million settlement with Hilcorp Energy Co., resolving claims the company failed to reduce emissions during well completion operations, in violation of the Clean Air Act and New Mexico state law.

  • October 18, 2024

    Chemical Cos. Say Firefighter Didn't Fix Standing In PFAS Suit

    3M Co. and two other chemical firms urged an Ohio federal judge to dismiss a firefighter's revised lawsuit over so-called forever chemicals, arguing that the allegations are plagued by the same shortcomings the Sixth Circuit flagged when it vacated class certification last year.

  • October 18, 2024

    Ore. Water Rights Issues Grounded In State Law, 9th Circ. Told

    The Klamath Irrigation District is asking the Ninth Circuit to certify two questions to the Oregon Supreme Court concerning the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's authority to use and control the use of water under Oregon law.

  • October 18, 2024

    FERC Extension For Pipeline Spur Warranted, DC Circ. Told

    The developer of a southern spur of the Mountain Valley Pipeline and two potential customers are asking the D.C. Circuit to nix conservation groups' challenge of a construction deadline extension the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission granted for the so-called Southgate project.

  • October 18, 2024

    Judge Excuses Nationwide From Ga. Mold Death Coverage

    A Georgia federal judge found Nationwide Property & Casualty Insurance Co. has no duty to defend an apartment owner from claims in a separate lawsuit alleging the landlord failed to treat black mold or warn a tenant who died of exposure to the infestation.

  • October 18, 2024

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen Professor Cat Jarman, Earl Spencer's new girlfriend, sue his ex-wife, Bitcoin fraudster Craig Wright file a £911 billion ($1.18 trillion) claim against BTC Core, journalist Oliver Kamm hit novelist Ros Barber with a defamation claim, and a barrister at Cloisters face a claim from a former client. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • October 17, 2024

    Monsanto Again Seeks Pause As Seattle PCB Trial Begins

    Monsanto is continuing its appellate bid to put off a chemical poisoning trial already underway in Washington state court as the plaintiffs told a Seattle jury on Thursday the company owes them more than $450 million, in the 10th such trial tied to an Evergreen State school.

  • October 17, 2024

    Mexico Phosphate Case Shines Light On 3rd-Party Funding

    A U.S. deep ocean exploration company's announcement last month that most, if not all, of a $37 million award it won against Mexico would go toward satisfying its obligations to its third-party funder has helped to fuel questions about whether such funding arrangements belong in investor-state arbitration.

  • October 17, 2024

    DOL, Red States Spar Over Loper Bright Impact On ESG Rule

    Conservative-led states suing the U.S. Department of Labor have told a Texas federal court that the end of the Chevron doctrine boosts their bid to end a rule allowing retirement plan advisers to consider environmental, social and governance factors in investment choices, while the DOL argued that it deserves another summary judgment win.

  • October 17, 2024

    Supreme Court Signals Skepticism On Staying Federal Rules

    A recent string of refusals to block major Biden administration energy and climate change rules suggests that the U.S. Supreme Court is setting limits on its willingness to elbow aside lower courts that are considering challenges to such rules, legal experts say.

  • October 17, 2024

    FERC Adds Tribal Protections To Transmission Siting Rule

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission unanimously finalized its rule updating how the agency plans to carry out its limited authority over siting transmission lines during its monthly meeting on Thursday.

  • October 17, 2024

    Chevron, Syngenta Want 600 'Baseless' Paraquat Cases Nixed

    Chevron and Syngenta urged an Illinois federal judge on Wednesday to begin the dismissal process for almost 600 paraquat plaintiffs the companies say have flouted a court order to document their alleged exposure to the pesticide.

  • October 17, 2024

    Monsanto Leveraged Judge Shuffle In Enviro Suit, Court Told

    A former customer of Bayer AG unit Monsanto urged a New Jersey appeals panel on Thursday to revive its suit seeking to avoid covering the agrochemical giant for environmental enforcement claims, arguing that the company took advantage of a change in jurists presiding over the case.

  • October 17, 2024

    Groups Challenge Utah Permit For Green River Lithium Project

    Conservation groups hit the Utah state engineer and an Anson Resources subsidiary with a suit challenging a water permit issued last month for a lithium extraction project along the Green River, the Colorado River's largest tributary.

  • October 17, 2024

    Jury Says Phillips 66 Owes $605M In Fuel Trade Secrets Fight

    A jury in California state court said Wednesday a retailer of low-carbon fuels is owed $604.9 million after finding that Phillips 66 swiped trade secrets relating to data, such as sales information and pricing methods.

  • October 17, 2024

    Mich. Urges 6th Circ. To Toss Enbridge's Line 5 Countersuit

    Michigan's governor has told the Sixth Circuit she and another state official are immune from Enbridge Energy LP's lawsuit over efforts to shut down a natural gas and oil pipeline because the dispute implicates state sovereignty issues that place it beyond federal jurisdiction.

  • October 17, 2024

    EPA Settles With Car, Parts Cos. Over Clean Air Act Violations

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it has finalized settlements with Shyft Group Inc. and Double R Diesel to resolve enforcement actions alleging they violated the Clean Air Act, with Shyft agreeing to pay a $2 million penalty.

Expert Analysis

  • Class Action Law Makes An LLC A 'Jurisdictional Platypus'

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    The applicability of Section 1332(d)(10) of the Class Action Fairness Act is still widely misunderstood — and given the ambiguous nature of limited liability companies, the law will likely continue to confound courts and litigants — so parties should be prepared for a range of outcomes, says Andrew Gunem at Strauss Borrelli.

  • 3 Leadership Practices For A More Supportive Firm Culture

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    Traditional leadership styles frequently amplify the inherent pressures of legal work, but a few simple, time-neutral strategies can strengthen the skills and confidence of employees and foster a more collaborative culture, while supporting individual growth and contribution to organizational goals, says Benjamin Grimes at BKG Leadership.

  • Rebuttal

    Cancer Research Org. Is Right To Avoid Corporate Influence

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    While a previous Law360 guest article criticizes the International Agency for Research on Cancer's processes, its reliance on peer-reviewed literature is proper and its refusal to allow corporate influence is sound science, say Lance Oliver and Ridge Mazingo at Motley Rice.

  • Attorneys Can Benefit From Reverse-Engineering Their Cases

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    Trial advocacy programs often teach lawyers to loosely track the progression of a lawsuit during preparation — case analysis, then direct examination, then cross-examination, openings and closings — but reverse-engineering cases by working backward from opening and closing statements can streamline the process and also improve case strategy, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • How Courts' Differing Views On Standing Affect PFAS Claims

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    Two recent opinions from New York federal courts — in Lurenz v. Coca-Cola, and Winans v. Ornua Foods North America — illustrate how pivotal the differing views on standing held by different courts will be for product liability litigation involving per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, particularly consumer claims, say attorneys at Hollingsworth.

  • New State Carbon Capture Laws: Key Points For Developers

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    Multiple states have introduced or expanded legal frameworks for carbon capture and sequestration this year, and while there are some common themes, many of these state laws include unique approaches and requirements — which developers and investors should be aware of when considering potential projects and investment risks, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Hyperlinked Documents

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    Recent rulings show that counsel should engage in early discussions with clients regarding the potential of hyperlinked documents in electronically stored information, which will allow for more deliberate negotiation of any agreements regarding the scope of discovery, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Loper Bright Limits Federal Agencies' Ability To Alter Course

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to dismantle Chevron deference also effectively overrules its 2005 decision in National Cable & Telecommunications Association v. Brand X, greatly diminishing agencies' ability to change regulatory course from one administration to the next, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.

  • New NHTSA Fuel Economy Rule Adds Compliance Complexity

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    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recently announced final rule on new corporate average fuel economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks will create challenges for manufacturers, which must also comply with the EPA's multipollutant rule and California's zero-emission vehicle programs, say Joanne Rotondi and Hannah Graae at Hogan Lovells.

  • Series

    Teaching Scuba Diving Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    As a master scuba instructor, I’ve learned how to prepare for the unexpected, overcome fears and practice patience, and each of these skills – among the many others I’ve developed – has profoundly enhanced my work as a lawyer, says Ron Raether at Troutman Pepper.

  • Lawyers Can Take Action To Honor The Voting Rights Act

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    As the Voting Rights Act reaches its 59th anniversary Tuesday, it must urgently be reinforced against recent efforts to dismantle voter protections, and lawyers can pitch in immediately by volunteering and taking on pro bono work to directly help safeguard the right to vote, says Anna Chu at We The Action.

  • Series

    After Chevron: NRC Is Shielded From Loper Bright's Effects

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    While the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Loper Bright v. Relentless decision brought an end to Chevron deference, Congress' unique delegation of discretionary authority to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will likely insulate it from the additional judicial scrutiny that other federal agencies will face, say Ryan Lighty and Scott Clausen at Morgan Lewis.

  • How Loper Bright Weakens NEPA Enviro Justice Strategy

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    The National Environmental Policy Act is central to the Biden administration's environmental justice agenda — but the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo casts doubt on the government's ability to rely on NEPA for this purpose, and a pending federal case will test the strategy's limits, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Opinion

    Expert Witness Standards Must Consider Peer Review Crisis

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    For nearly two decades, the so-called replication crisis has upended how the scientific community views the reliability of peer-reviewed studies, and it’s time for courts to reevaluate whether peer review is a trustworthy proxy for expert witness reliability, say Jeffrey Gross and Robert LaCroix at Reid Collins.

  • Navigating Antitrust Considerations In ESG Collaborations

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    The intersection of ESG goals and antitrust laws presents a complex challenge for businesses and their counsel — but by creating clear frameworks for collaboration, adhering to established guidelines and carefully considering the competitive implications of their actions, companies can work toward sustainability while mitigating legal risks, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

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