Environmental

  • September 19, 2024

    Union Pacific Contractors Again Escape Texas Enviro Claims

    A Texas appeals court on Thursday affirmed a trial court's decision to dismiss without prejudice the claims scores of people lodged against two Union Pacific Railroad Co. contractors in their litigation over cancer-causing contamination related to a Houston rail yard.

  • September 19, 2024

    Gold Mine Operator Agrees To Pay $3M In Water Pollution Row

    The operator of the controversial Buckhorn Mountain Gold Mine has agreed to pay more than $3.1 million and take a variety of steps to investigate and remediate water pollution, under a proposed consent decree filed in Washington federal court on Thursday.

  • September 19, 2024

    Food Safety Org Says EPA Stalling On Sharing Pesticide Info

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is illegally failing to provide important records about how it assesses pesticides' ecological impact and human health risks, the Center for Food Safety said in a new lawsuit.

  • September 19, 2024

    Tyson Foods Hit With Greenwashing Suit For 'Net-Zero' Claim

    Tyson Foods Inc. has been slapped with a complaint by the Environmental Working Group in D.C. Superior Court, accusing the country's second-largest meat company of falsely claiming it will be net-zero by 2050 and misrepresenting its industrial beef products as "climate-smart."

  • September 19, 2024

    EPA Urges DC Circ. Not To Block Coal Ash Rule Implementation

    A Kentucky electric utility is "misleading" the D.C. Circuit about how clean former coal ash pits are once the material is removed, and should not be allowed to block implementation of a new coal ash rule, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday.

  • September 19, 2024

    Calif. Port's Approval Of Hydrogen Project Challenged

    Two conservation groups filed a California state court lawsuit challenging the Port of Stockton's review and approval of a hydrogen production and distribution facility, arguing it conducted an inadequate environmental review and failed to ensure project impacts are mitigated.

  • September 19, 2024

    Consultant Ducks Contempt In Fight Over Packaging Patent

    An inventor facing allegations of abusive patent behavior by the packaging company for which he previously consulted has dodged a civil contempt finding after a North Carolina federal judge found he was not in violation of an injunction barring him from making false infringement claims.

  • September 19, 2024

    FERC Must Heed DC Circ. 'Shift' On Gas Reviews, Chair Says

    Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Willie Phillips said Thursday that the D.C. Circuit wrongly wiped out the agency's approval of a Northeast pipeline expansion project, but acknowledged that recent court decisions will force FERC to rethink how it reviews gas infrastructure projects.

  • September 19, 2024

    Judge Blocks Manhattan Project Waste From Mich. Landfill

    A state judge barred a southeast Michigan landfill from accepting shipments of radiological material Wednesday, issuing a temporary restraining order days after surrounding communities sued over planned deliveries of contaminated soil and debris left over from the development of the first atomic bomb.

  • September 19, 2024

    BakerHostetler Adds Ex-Baker Botts Accident Response Duo

    Months after hiring former Baker Botts attorney Greg Dillard to lead its catastrophic accident response team, BakerHostetler has announced the hire of two more attorneys from the firm as counsel in Washington, D.C., and Houston.

  • September 19, 2024

    Feds Defend At-Sea Monitoring Rule Despite Chevron Demise

    The federal government is defending its power to require fishermen to partially fund the cost of compliance monitors aboard their ships, arguing to the D.C. Circuit that the demise of the so-called Chevron deference doesn't change the fact that federal law authorizes the at-sea monitoring rules.

  • September 19, 2024

    AT&T To Pay For Removal Of Hazardous Lake Tahoe Cables

    A California sportfishing nonprofit on Wednesday told a federal court that an AT&T subsidiary has agreed to pay an estimated $1.5 million to remove its lead-clad telecom cables in Lake Tahoe to end litigation that the cables pose a health threat.

  • September 18, 2024

    Waste Mgmt. Sued For $3.8M Over Renewable Energy Credits

    A Constellation Energy Corp. unit slapped Waste Management Inc. with a complaint in Texas federal court on Tuesday, saying the company has refused to cough up more than $3.8 million for renewable energy credits Constellation paid for but never received.

  • September 18, 2024

    PureCycle Investors Seek Final OK Of $12M Settlement

    Investors in plastic recycling company PureCycle have asked a Florida federal judge to grant final approval to a $12 million deal to end a proposed class action alleging the company misled shareholders about its technology, financial projections and access to raw materials, roughly two years after the court temporarily tossed it for being imprecise.

  • September 18, 2024

    EPA Retaliated Against Three Scientists, Watchdog Says

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's internal watchdog said Wednesday that agency officials pushing for faster progress on a backlog of chemical reviews retaliated against several scientists for raising differing scientific opinions on chemical assessments.

  • September 18, 2024

    Wash. Court Won't Ax Testimony In Tribes' River Pollution Suit

    A Washington federal judge issued a slew of orders Tuesday refusing to limit expert testimony in the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation's lawsuit against a smelter operator over pollution in the Upper Columbia River, saying the testimony will help the jury make a decision at trial.

  • September 18, 2024

    Loper Bright Undercuts SEC Climate Rule, Fracking Cos. Say

    Two fracking companies suing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over its climate disclosure rules have again urged the Eighth Circuit to vacate the measures, offering a diverging interpretation of how the U.S. Supreme Court's decision axing Chevron deference should apply.

  • September 18, 2024

    Insurers Demand Arbitration Of La. Storm Damage At 2nd Circ.

    A Second Circuit panel puzzled over whether to uphold a New York federal court's ruling denying surplus insurers arbitration in a Louisiana hurricane damage case, during oral arguments over whether the court should follow Bayou State law prohibiting arbitration or reverse the lower court's decision.

  • September 18, 2024

    5th Circ. Favors Excess Insurer In Marina Coverage Dispute

    The Fifth Circuit upheld a ruling in an inter-insurer dispute over coverage responsibilities of a $13.7 million judgment entered against their mutual client, holding Wednesday that while the excess insurer breached its duties, the primary insurer bears the larger financial burden because it failed to properly settle the underlying dispute.

  • September 18, 2024

    Gov't Lifeline Gives Nippon A Fighting Chance On US Steel

    The Biden administration has indicated it's poised to block Nippon Steel from proceeding with a controversial $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel, but the government is reportedly giving the Japanese steelmaker an additional 90 days to prove its case, a development that should give Nippon hope it can get the deal done, attorneys say.

  • September 18, 2024

    Feds Oppose Bid To Block EPA Mercury Rule At High Court

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, several blue states and a coalition of green groups on Monday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject an effort to reverse the D.C. Circuit's decision allowing the EPA to implement a mercury air pollution rule.

  • September 18, 2024

    NC Panel Won't Undo Energy Rates In Solar Incentives Row

    The North Carolina state appeals court has declined to unravel the state's revised energy rates for residents with rooftop solar power, saying that while the North Carolina Utilities Commission erred by concluding it was not required to conduct a cost-benefit investigation, it de facto carried out such an inquiry anyway.

  • September 18, 2024

    Fla. Judge Keeps Tribe's CWA Permitting Power Row On Hold

    A Florida federal judge on Wednesday further extended his pause of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians' lawsuit claiming the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency improperly granted Florida authority over a Clean Water Act permitting program, while the D.C. Circuit considers an appeal in a similar case.

  • September 18, 2024

    DOJ Says Ship Is Liable For $100M In Baltimore Bridge Collapse

    The U.S. Department of Justice is suing to recover $100 million from the owner and the manager of the cargo ship that slammed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, alleging gross negligence on their part killed six people and destroyed a vital transportation corridor.

  • September 18, 2024

    No Rehearing For 10th Circ. Methane Rule Challenge

    A Tenth Circuit panel rejected a request to reconsider its decision to throw out a ruling that partially invalidated an Obama-era rule limiting venting, flaring and leaks from oil and gas wells on federal land.

Expert Analysis

  • Tips For Companies Tapping Into Commercial Cleantech

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    A recent report from the European Patent Office and European Investment Bank examining the global financing and commercialization of cleantech innovation necessary for the green energy transition can help companies understand and solve the issues in developing and implementing the full potential of cleantech, says Eleanor Maciver at Mewburn Ellis.

  • Series

    Being An EMT Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While some of my experiences as an emergency medical technician have been unusually painful and searing, the skills I’ve learned — such as triage, empathy and preparedness — are just as useful in my work as a restructuring lawyer, says Marshall Huebner at Davis Polk.

  • 15 Quick Tips For Uncovering And Mitigating Juror Biases

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    As highlighted by the recent jury selection process in the criminal hush money trial against former President Donald Trump, juror bias presents formidable challenges for defendants, and attorneys must employ proactive strategies — both new and old — to blunt its impact, say Monica Delgado and Jonathan Harris at Harris St. Laurent.

  • In Debate Over High Court Wording, 'Wetland' Remains Murky

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    Though the U.S. Supreme Court's decision limiting the Clean Water Act’s wetlands jurisdiction is now a year old, Sackett v. EPA's practical consequences for property owners are still evolving as federal agencies and private parties advance competing interpretations of the court's language and methods for distinguishing wetlands in lower courts, says Neal McAliley at Carlton Fields.

  • Contract Disputes Recap: Saying What Needs To Be Said

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    Edward Arnold and Bret Marfut at Seyfarth Shaw examine three recent decisions that delve into the meaning and effect of contractual releases, and demonstrate the importance of ensuring that releases, as written, do what the parties intend.

  • Geothermal Energy Has Growing Potential In The US

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    Bipartisan support for the geothermal industry shows that geothermal energy can be an elegant solution toward global decarbonization efforts because of its small footprint, low supply chain risk, and potential to draw on the skills of existing highly specialized oil and gas workers and renewable specialists, say attorneys at Weil.

  • Insurer Quota-Sharing Lessons From $112M Bad Faith Verdict

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    In Indiana GRQ v. American Guarantee and Liability Insurance, an Indiana federal jury recently issued a landmark $112 million bad faith verdict, illustrating why insurers must understand the interplay between bad faith law and quota-sharing before entering into these relatively new arrangements, say Jason Reichlyn and Christopher Sakauye at Dykema. 

  • Insurance Types That May Help Cos. After Key Bridge Collapse

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    Following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, businesses that depend on the bridge, the Port of Baltimore and related infrastructure for shipment and distribution of cargo should understand which common types of first-party insurance coverage may provide recoveries for financial losses, say Bert Wells and Richard Lewis at Reed Smith.

  • Exploring An Alternative Model Of Litigation Finance

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    A new model of litigation finance, most aptly described as insurance-backed litigation funding, differs from traditional funding in two key ways, and the process of securing it involves three primary steps, say Bob Koneck, Christopher Le Neve Foster and Richard Butters at Atlantic Global Risk LLC.

  • Salvaging The Investor-State Arbitration System's Legitimacy

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    Recent developments in Europe and Ecuador highlight the vulnerability of the investor-state arbitration framework, but arbitrators can avert a crisis by relying on a poorly understood doctrine of fairness and equity, rather than law, to resolve the disputes before them, says Phillip Euell at Diaz Reus.

  • NY's Vision For Grid Of The Future: Flexible, Open, Affordable

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    Acknowledging that New York state's progress toward its climate goals is stalling, the New York Public Service Commission's recent "Grid of the Future" order signals a move toward more flexible, cost-effective solutions — and suggests potential opportunities for nonutility participation, say Daniel Spitzer and William McLaughlin at Hodgson Russ.

  • Trump Hush Money Case Offers Master Class In Trial Strategy

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    The New York criminal hush money trial of former President Donald Trump typifies some of the greatest challenges that lawyers face in crafting persuasive presentations, providing lessons on how to handle bad facts, craft a simple story that withstands attack, and cross-examine with that story in mind, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Leveraging Insurance Amid Microplastics Concerns

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    A pending microplastics lawsuit — New York v. PepsiCo Inc. — may be a harbinger of what is to come for companies whose products are exposed to the environment, so any company considering how to address microplastics liability should include a careful assessment of the potential for insurance coverage in its due diligence, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

  • Series

    Teaching Yoga Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Being a yoga instructor has helped me develop my confidence and authenticity, as well as stress management and people skills — all of which have crossed over into my career as an attorney, says Laura Gongaware at Clyde & Co.

  • A Vision For Economic Clerkships In The Legal System

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    As courts handle increasingly complex damages analyses involving vast amounts of data, an economic clerkship program — integrating early-career economists into the judicial system — could improve legal outcomes and provide essential training to clerks, say Mona Birjandi at Data for Decisions and Matt Farber at Secretariat.

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