Environmental

  • September 23, 2024

    SEC Scores $12M Judgment In Unregistered Dealer Case

    A Minnesota federal judge has ordered financial firm Carebourn Capital LP, its founder and an affiliated company to pay more than $12 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest over U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission claims they made millions selling securities as unregistered dealers.

  • September 23, 2024

    US Can't Pin Clean Water Act Violation On Fla. Farmer

    A Florida federal judge recommended that a court rule in favor of a landowner sued by the government for allegedly violating the Clean Water Act after polluting wetlands to build a farm, saying a man-made ditch bordering the property isn't technically connected to navigable waters of the United States.

  • September 23, 2024

    Hawaii Judge Says Tenants Must Arbitrate Water Pollution Suit

    The named plaintiffs in a proposed class of Hawaii tenants must arbitrate the individual claims in their water contamination case against a landlord while their other claims are paused, an Aloha State federal judge has ruled.

  • September 23, 2024

    La. Wants EPA Civil Rights Regs Vacated After Court Win

    Louisiana is asking a federal judge to revisit an order and amend it to completely vacate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency civil rights regulations, after the judge granted the Pelican State's motion for a permanent injunction within its borders.

  • September 23, 2024

    Conn. Reaches $5M Deal To Resolve Vision Solar Case

    Connecticut is asking a judge to sign off on a judgment that would impose a $5 million civil penalty against Vision Solar LLC to resolve the state's unfair trade practices complaint against the bankrupt company.

  • September 20, 2024

    Wash. Strikes Deal With Wild Fish Groups To End ESA Row

    Two conservation groups have struck an agreement with Washington state to drop a claim that some of its hatchery programs are unlawfully imperiling protected wild salmon on the Lower Columbia River, though the groups will continue to pursue similar claims against Oregon and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

  • September 20, 2024

    Cards Against Humanity Hits SpaceX With $15M Trespass Suit

    Cards Against Humanity LLC hit Elon Musk's SpaceX with a $15 million lawsuit in Texas state court, alleging SpaceX has trespassed and dumped trash and machinery on its once-pristine Lone Star State property that the party card game-maker bought to impede former President Donald Trump's U.S.-Mexico border wall.

  • September 20, 2024

    Court Cuts Down Antitrust Suit From Loggers, Landowners

    An Oregon federal court has tossed a lawsuit by loggers and landowners that accused Iron Triangle LLC of monopolizing the market for logging services in part of the Pacific Northwest, saying they failed to show the logging and lumber company has monopoly power.

  • September 20, 2024

    EPA Defends Methane Rule At Supreme Court

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and green group allies on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject states' and fossil fuel industry players' effort to block the implementation of a rule strengthening methane emissions control requirements for oil and gas infrastructure.

  • September 20, 2024

    EV Battery Co. Hit With $207M Default Loss For Lack Of Attys

    Shareholders of electrical vehicle battery maker Romeo Power Inc. have secured a $206.8 million default win against the company after it failed to retain new counsel in a proposed class action alleging it concealed its acute shortage of high-quality battery cells before going public via a merger with a blank check company.

  • September 20, 2024

    Enviro Group Threatens Suit To Protect Newt In Fla., Ga.

    The Center for Biological Diversity has notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service it plans to sue over the denial of Endangered Species Act protections to a newt species that lives in threatened pine forests and wetlands in southeastern Georgia and north-central Florida.

  • September 20, 2024

    Law Professors Say Boulder Climate Suit Clearly Preempted

    Two law professors and a conservative legal nonprofit have urged Colorado justices to toss a city's climate tort lawsuit, arguing that the claims are clearly preempted by the Clean Air Act and that the city should not be allowed to make climate change policy decisions for the rest of the country.

  • September 20, 2024

    Utilities Group Wants In On 4th Circ. FERC Grid Policy Fight

    A coalition of municipal utilities and electricity cooperatives that rely on transmission facilities they don't own to deliver power urged the Fourth Circuit to let it intervene in an appeal challenging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's recent overhaul of its regional transmission policy.

  • September 20, 2024

    5th Circ. Says Tribunal Properly Slashed $10.6M Gas Award

    A lower court improperly vacated an arbitral tribunal's decision slashing some $4 million from a $10.6 million award issued to a Colorado-based exploration company following a dispute over a Cameroonian natural gas project, the Fifth Circuit ruled Thursday in a published opinion.

  • September 20, 2024

    IPO Trio Looks To Raise $536M Combined As Autumn Begins

    Three companies spanning the energy, healthcare and life sciences industries are preparing initial public offerings that could raise $536 million combined in the coming week, guided by six law firms, signaling an upturn in IPOs as autumn begins.

  • September 20, 2024

    House Passes GOP Push To Nix EPA Auto Emissions Regs

    The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Friday passed a resolution that would block implementation of the Biden administration's tighter greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars and light trucks, though the legislation is likely dead on arrival in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

  • September 20, 2024

    Insurers Say Ky. House Damage Wasn't From Mine Collapse

    Insurers told a Kentucky federal court to toss a couple's case seeking compensation for damage to their home because of coal mine subsidence, arguing the damage wasn't caused by a collapsing void underground.

  • September 20, 2024

    CFTC Issues Final Guidance On Carbon Credit Markets

    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Friday put forth guidelines it says will help foster transparency and deter manipulation in the emerging market for voluntary carbon credits by, among other things, encouraging derivatives exchanges to assess the environmental benefits associated with the credits.

  • September 20, 2024

    DuPont Cos. Can't Escape Cape Fear River PFAS Suit

    A North Carolina federal judge said DuPont and several corporate spin-offs can't escape a lawsuit brought by four Tar Heel State residents who claim the companies knowingly poisoned the Cape Fear River with toxic forever chemicals pollution.

  • September 20, 2024

    Chevron's Demise May Not Bring Deluge Courts Had Feared

    Though the death of Chevron deference has opened a door to attacking administrative decisions, the expected uptick in litigation probably won't threaten to clog federal courts, numerous administrative law experts told Law360.

  • September 20, 2024

    DOE Picks 25 Battery Projects For $3B Of Awards

    The U.S. Department of Energy on Friday said it has selected 25 projects across 14 states for negotiations for $3 billion of federal funding aimed at boosting the domestic production and recycling of batteries and key materials.

  • September 20, 2024

    Green Groups Can't Bar Housing Project, SC Judge Says

    A South Carolina federal judge on Thursday denied conservation groups' push to block a 9,000-unit housing development on the Cainhoy Peninsula near Charleston, ruling they've not shown they're likely to succeed in a case challenging federal reviews and approvals.

  • September 20, 2024

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

    The past week in London has seen crypto exchange Binance face a new claim from the co-founder of SO Legal, a U.S. immersive art company take on a Bristol venue for copyright violations and Blake Morgan LLP hit with a pension schemes claim by The Trust for Welsh Archeology. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • September 19, 2024

    Wash. Justices Strike Down County's Rural Winery Regs

    The Washington State Supreme Court has struck down an Evergreen State county's regulations for wineries and tasting rooms on rural land near Seattle, saying Thursday the local government violated long-term planning and land use law by downplaying potential environmental consequences of the rules before passing them.

  • September 19, 2024

    GM Asks Full 6th Circ. To Rehear Truck Emissions Fraud Suit

    General Motors LLC is asking the full Sixth Circuit for an en banc rehearing of a split decision that revived state law claims from four plaintiffs who alleged that GM misleadingly marked Chevrolet Silverado and Sierra vehicles as being more environmentally friendly than they were.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Boxing has influenced my legal work by enabling me to confidently hone the skills I've learned from the sport, like the ability to remain calm under pressure, evaluate an opponent's weaknesses and recognize when to seize an important opportunity, says Kirsten Soto at Clyde & Co.

  • What NYC's Green Fast Track Means For Affordable Housing

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    New York City's Green Fast Track for Housing initiative, which went into effect last month, aims to speed up the environmental review process for modest residential developments and could potentially pave the way for similar initiatives in other cities, say Vivien Krieger and Rachel Scall at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Opinion

    Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper decision will shape the contours of industry self-regulation in the years to come, providing opportunities for this often-misunderstood practice, says Eric Reicin at BBB National Programs.

  • 3 Ways Agencies Will Keep Making Law After Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court clearly thinks it has done something big in overturning the Chevron precedent that had given deference to agencies' statutory interpretations, but regulated parties have to consider how agencies retain significant power to shape the law and its meaning, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Roundup

    After Chevron

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    Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard in June, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 36 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Few Changes In ITC Rulemaking

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's opinion overruling the Chevron doctrine will have less impact on the U.S. International Trade Commission than other agencies administering trade statutes, given that the commission exercises its congressionally granted authority in a manner that allows for consistent decision making at both agency and judicial levels, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

  • Opinion

    Reform NEPA To Speed Mining Permits, Clean Energy Shift

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    It is essential to balance responsible regulatory oversight with permit approvals for mining projects that are needed for the transition to renewable energy — and with the National Environmental Policy Act being one of the leading causes of permit delays, reform is urgently needed, say Ana Maria Gutierrez and Michael Miller at Womble Bond.

  • Opinion

    Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem

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    The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.

  • Calif. Long-Tail Ruling Continues Policyholder-Friendly Trend

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    The California Supreme Court's recent ruling in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser Cement & Gypsum, rejecting horizontal policy exhaustion, was the latest in a string of its decisions involving insurance coverage for continuous or progressive injury claims that favor policyholders, say Billie Mandelbaum and David Goodwin at Covington.

  • A Case Study For Calif. Cities In Water Utility Takeovers

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    With growing water scarcity and drier weather looming, some local governments in California have sought to acquire investor-owned water utilities by eminent domain — but the 2016 case of Claremont v. Golden State Water is a reminder that such municipalization attempts must meet certain statutory requirements, say attorneys at Nossaman.

  • Series

    NY Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The second quarter of 2024 saw less enforcement activity in the realm of New York financial services, but brought substantial regulatory and legislative developments, including state regulators' guidance on cybersecurity compliance and customer service processes for virtual currency entities, say James Vivenzio and Andrew Lucas at Perkins Coie.

  • Series

    Skiing And Surfing Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I’ve learned while riding waves in the ocean and slopes in the mountains have translated to my legal career — developing strong mentor relationships, remaining calm in difficult situations, and being prepared and able to move to a backup plan when needed, says Brian Claassen at Knobbe Martens.

  • Tracking Implementation Of IRA Programs As Election Nears

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    As the Biden administration races to cement key regulations implementing the Inflation Reduction Act, a number of the law's programs and incentives are at risk of delay or repeal if Republicans retake control of Congress, the White House or both — so stakeholders should closely watch ongoing IRA implementation and guidance, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • Unpacking The Circuit Split Over A Federal Atty Fee Rule

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    Federal circuit courts that have addressed Rule 41(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are split as to whether attorney fees are included as part of the costs of a previously dismissed action, so practitioners aiming to recover or avoid fees should tailor arguments to the appropriate court, says Joseph Myles and Lionel Lavenue at Finnegan.

  • 4 Steps To Repair Defense Credibility In Opening Statements

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    Given the continued rise of record-breaking verdicts, defense counsel need to consider fresh approaches to counteract the factors coloring juror attitudes — starting with a formula for rebuilding credibility at the very beginning of opening statements, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.

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