Environmental

  • September 16, 2025

    Judge Seeks Ga. Justices' Input On Bio-Lab Chemical Fire Suit

    A Georgia federal judge asked the state's Supreme Court for guidance on whether metro Atlanta residents can force a chemical plant to cover medical monitoring in the aftermath of a 2024 fire, writing that there's "considerable uncertainty" around whether such a remedy is permitted by Peach State law.

  • September 16, 2025

    DC Circ. Urged To Rehear EPA's HFC Market Allocation Case

    A Georgia refrigerants company is asking for another shot to challenge the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's implementation of a 2020 law mandating an 85% reduction in hydrofluorocarbon consumption by 2036, requesting an en banc rehearing from the D.C. Circuit after a panel unanimously rejected its challenge last month.

  • September 16, 2025

    Feds Can't Avoid Property Owners' Navy Flight Takings Claims

    A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge rejected the government's attempt to shutter property owners' claims accusing the U.S. Navy of violating the Fifth Amendment by boosting flight operations at a Washington air strip, paving the way for a March trial.

  • September 16, 2025

    EPA Sued For Dropping Slaughterhouse Water Pollution Regs

    Several organizations have filed a petition with the Ninth Circuit contesting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to renege on a Biden-era proposal that would've levied stricter rules of how much meat and poultry slaughtering, processing, and rendering facilities could discharge pollutants into nearby waterways.

  • September 16, 2025

    BlackRock Blames Coal Production Cuts On Falling Demand

    BlackRock Inc. told a Texas federal court that coal production has declined because demand from coal-fired power plants has been falling for years, not because asset managers conspired to pressure the producers.

  • September 16, 2025

    US Asks Court To Sink Vermont Climate Superfund Law

    The Trump administration, Republican-led states and business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and American Petroleum Institute on Monday asked a Vermont federal court to kill the state's climate Superfund law.

  • September 16, 2025

    Plant Bailout Cost Approvals Were Premature, FERC Told

    Environmental and consumer advocates say the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission jumped the gun in approving plans to charge power consumers for the continued operation of retiring power plants that the Trump administration has controversially ordered to remain open.

  • September 16, 2025

    Feds Oppose Sierra Club's Bid To Freeze $50M In Border Funds

    The Trump administration told a California federal court Monday that forcing it to honor a settlement agreement between the Sierra Club and the Biden administration to use $50 million in border security funds on environmental projects would place the government between two conflicting court orders.

  • September 16, 2025

    Order Halting Ørsted Wind Project Is Valid, Trump Admin Says

    The Trump administration has told a D.C. federal judge that its challenged decision to halt work on an approved and nearly completed offshore wind farm in New England stands on firm legal ground and should not be overturned.

  • September 16, 2025

    Insurer Must Arbitrate Chemical Injury Coverage Dispute

    An insurer must arbitrate its dispute with a homeowners association over coverage for underlying suits claiming that the association's pool contractor allowed hazardous chemicals to spread and injure patrons, a Virginia federal court ruled, finding that the policy's nonbinding arbitration agreement is enforceable under state law.

  • September 16, 2025

    Environmental Groups Say Gov't Won't Share Climate Docs

    Environmental groups have told a Massachusetts federal judge that the Trump administration isn't following his suggestion that it turn over materials related to the work of an advisory panel recommending reversal of the government's position that greenhouse gases are dangerous.

  • September 15, 2025

    FAA, SpaceX Get Early Win In Starship Enviro Review Suit

    A D.C. federal judge Monday handed a win to the Federal Aviation Administration and SpaceX in litigation alleging they failed to complete an adequate environmental review for SpaceX's Starship rocket launch program, ruling that the analysis was "perhaps imperfect" but ultimately well reasoned.

  • September 15, 2025

    Insurer Asks Court To Deny Fla. Tree Co.'s Coverage After Fire

    An Ohio-based insurance company filed a lawsuit against a tree service and a funeral services business in Florida federal court, saying that it should not have to defend the company that was sued over cutting down the tree that caused a fire and resulted in $2 million in damage. 

  • September 15, 2025

    Environmental Rules On Chopping Block For Gov't Contractors

    The General Services Administration and Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council truncated their regulatory agendas, stripping rules aimed at minimizing forever chemicals and greenhouse gas emissions in government contracting, as part of the Trump administration's deregulatory program. Here, Law360 takes a look at the regulatory priorities for the two agencies.

  • September 15, 2025

    11th Circ. Told Fla. 'Radioactive' Road Suit Must Be Tossed

    The U.S. government and a fertilizer producer urged the Eleventh Circuit to toss an environmental nonprofit's challenge to the use of radioactive phosphogypsum on a private roadway, arguing the nonprofit lacks standing. 

  • September 15, 2025

    FERC Abandons Push To Update Pipeline Review Policy

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has ended its long-gestating proceeding aimed at updating its gas infrastructure approval policy, saying the policy the agency initially enacted in 1999 remains sound.

  • September 15, 2025

    Campbell's Soup Admits To Thousands Of Lake Erie Violations

    The Campbell's Soup Co. on Monday admitted to the federal government's and environmental groups' allegations that it violated a Clean Water Act permit more than 5,000 times at its Lake Erie facility, leaving only its penalty to be decided.

  • September 15, 2025

    Energy Trader Tries To Sink CFTC Spoofing Case

    An energy trading firm and its owner asked an Illinois federal judge on Friday to grant summary judgment on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's allegations they manipulated the crude oil market, saying the agency has put forward no evidence the owner intended to cancel the futures orders in question when he placed them.

  • September 15, 2025

    Stop & Shop Says Too Late To Swap Plaintiff In Wipes Suit

    Stop & Shop on Monday urged a Massachusetts federal court to deny a bid to substitute new plaintiffs in a suit alleging its flushable wipes are not flushable as advertised, saying the plaintiff hasn't shown good cause for the change 14 months after the amendment deadline.

  • September 15, 2025

    Utilities Slam EPA's Lead Water Rule As Too Broad, Rushed

    Drinking water utilities have told the D.C. Circuit that the federal government's 2024 rule ordering the removal of lead service lines imposes unreasonably burdensome compliance requirements, and they urged the court to strike it down.

  • September 15, 2025

    Charleston SC Not Appealing Dismissal Of Climate Suit

    Charleston, South Carolina, has ended its pursuit of climate change-related infrastructure damages from fossil fuel companies, electing not to appeal a state judge's dismissal of the city's lawsuit last month.

  • September 15, 2025

    EPA Backs Off Drinking Water Regs For 4 PFAS

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has asked the D.C. Circuit to vacate part of its rule setting drinking water standards for certain forever chemicals, saying it now believes that those shouldn't have been included in a Biden-era rule.

  • September 15, 2025

    9th Circ. Says Ore. Water Rights Case Is Still Relevant

    The Ninth Circuit won't dismiss the Klamath Irrigation District's appeal over water releases from an Oregon lake as moot, saying a decision would provide relief by affecting how the scarce resource is allocated regardless of the federal government's new position on the application of the Endangered Species Act.

  • September 12, 2025

    8th Circ. Pauses Challenges To Abandoned Climate Regs

    The Eighth Circuit on Friday said it would wait to rule on challenges to Biden-era climate disclosure rules that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has said it will no longer defend, giving the regulator time to decide what it wants to do with the rules.

  • September 12, 2025

    DOJ Says States Can't Reverse Grant Cuts In OMB Reg Fight

    The Trump administration urged a Massachusetts federal judge to throw out a suit brought by a score of states accusing it of misinterpreting an Office of Management and Budget regulation to slash thousands of grants, arguing they must seek relief in another forum.

Expert Analysis

  • Tips For US Investors Eyeing Middle East Data Centers

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    While Middle East data center investment presents a compelling opportunity in light of renewed U.S.-Gulf cooperation on artificial intelligence and critical technologies, these projects require a nuanced understanding of regional legal and regulatory regimes, says Haykel Hajjaji at Covington.

  • New DOJ Penalty Policy Could Spell Trouble For Cos.

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    In light of the U.S. Department of Justice’s recently published guidance making victim relief a core condition of coordinated resolution crediting, companies facing parallel investigations must carefully calibrate their negotiation strategies to minimize the risk of duplicative penalties, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Clean Energy Tax Changes Cut Timelines, Add Red Tape

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    With its dramatic changes to energy tax credits, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will reshape project financing and investment planning — and wind and solar developers, especially those in the early stages of projects, face stricter timelines and heightened compliance challenges, says Dan Ruth at Balch & Bingham.

  • High Court Cert Spotlights Varying Tests For Federal Removal

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    A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to review Chevron v. Plaquemines Parish, a case involving the federal officer removal statute, highlights three other recent circuit court decisions raising federal removal questions, and serves as a reminder that defendants are the masters of removal actions, says Varun Aery at Hollingsworth.

  • Trump Air Emissions Carveouts Cloud The Regulatory Picture

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    President Donald Trump's new proclamations temporarily exempting key U.S. industries from air toxics standards, issued under a narrow, rarely-used provision of the Clean Air Act, will likely lead to legal challenges and tighter standards in some states, contributing to further regulatory uncertainty, say attorneys at GableGotwals.

  • How Property Insurers Serve As Climate Change Harbingers

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    Thomas Dawson at McDermott discusses the role that U.S. property insurers may play in identifying and assessing climate risk, as well as in financing climate change adaptation projects, in light of global warming and shifting geopolitical realities.

  • Series

    Playing Baseball Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing baseball in college, and now Wiffle ball in a local league, has taught me that teamwork, mental endurance and emotional intelligence are not only important to success in the sport, but also to success as a trial attorney, says Kevan Dorsey at Swift Currie.

  • Managing Risks As State AGs Seek To Fill Enforcement Gap

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    Given an unprecedented surge in state attorney general activity resulting from significant shifts in federal enforcement priorities, companies must consider tailored strategies for navigating the ever-evolving risk landscape, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • A Deep Dive Into 14 Nixed Gensler-Era SEC Rule Proposals

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last month formally withdrew 14 notices of proposed rulemaking, including several significant and widely criticized proposals that had been issued under former Chair Gary Gensler's leadership, signaling a clear and definitive shift away from the previous administration, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Skillful Persuasion

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    In many ways, law school teaches us how to argue, but when the ultimate goal is to get your client what they want, being persuasive through preparation and humility is the more likely key to success, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

  • A Look At Trump 2.0 Antitrust Enforcement So Far

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    The first six months of President Donald Trump's second administration were marked by aggressive antitrust enforcement tempered by traditional structural remedies for mergers, but other unprecedented actions, like the firing of Federal Trade Commission Democrats, will likely stoke heated discussion ahead, says Richard Dagen at Axinn.

  • Litigation Inspiration: How To Respond After A Loss

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    Every litigator loses a case now and then, and the sting of that loss can become a medicine that strengthens or a poison that corrodes, depending on how the attorney responds, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Tips For Cos. From California Climate Reporting FAQ

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    New guidance from the California Air Resources Board on how businesses must implement the state's sweeping climate reporting requirements should help companies assess their exposure, understand their disclosure obligations and begin documenting good-faith compliance efforts, says Thierry Montoya at Frost Brown.

  • What Calif. Insurance Ruling Means For Smoke Damage Limits

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    As California continues to grapple with an increasing number of wildfire claims, a state court's recent Aliff v. California FAIR Plan decision serves as a clear directive to insurers that policy language that narrows the scope of fire coverage below the California Insurance Code's minimum standards is impermissible, say attorneys at Wood Smith.

  • The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

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    The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

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