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Energy
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October 16, 2024
Amec Unit Wants 'Vexatious' Biofuel Plant Suit Tossed
Energy construction giant Amec Foster Wheeler and one of its units called on a Georgia federal judge to throw out a lawsuit alleging it misled a Peach State power company about the quality of work on two biofuel plants, arguing the company's complaint violates the claim-splitting doctrine and lacks sufficient factual allegations.
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October 16, 2024
NC Panel Won't Reignite Duke Energy Case Over House Fire
A split panel of the North Carolina Court of Appeals declined to revive a liability suit brought against Duke Energy Corp. and a contractor it hired to install new meters at its customers' homes after one of those contractors allegedly caused a bed to catch fire leading to $130,000 in damage.
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October 16, 2024
Mich. Landfill Says Manhattan Project Waste A National Issue
A Michigan dump site on Tuesday said a dispute over whether it can accept radioactive material from the first atomic bomb project is a matter of national concern, arguing attempts by a group of surrounding communities in state court to block it from accepting the waste interferes with a federal waste program.
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October 16, 2024
Feds Pan ComEd Four's Effort To Avoid Convictions
Prosecutors urged an Illinois federal judge Wednesday to reject an acquittal bid brought by Commonwealth Edison's former CEO and three co-defendants in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling narrowing the scope of federal bribery law, arguing that not only is their motion untimely, but the government proved quid pro quo bribery at trial last year.
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October 16, 2024
Brazilian Electricity Biz Seeks US Ch. 15 Recognition
Light SA, parent to a major Brazilian electrical utility, has asked a Texas bankruptcy judge to grant U.S. recognition of its foreign insolvency proceedings, saying a Brazilian court had approved a restructuring plan for the company to deal with roughly $2 billion in debt that has high creditor support.
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October 16, 2024
EPA Defends Rejection Of Smog Rule Reconsideration Pleas
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency told the D.C. Circuit it reasonably rejected petitions by U.S. Steel Corp. and Hybar LLC to reconsider its so-called Good Neighbor Plan to curb cross-state ozone pollution after courts stayed the rule for some affected states.
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October 16, 2024
DC Circ. Urged To Let Feds Fix Pipeline Safety Rules
A pipeline industry group urged a D.C. Circuit panel to reconsider its August decision throwing out a handful of new safety standards for gas transmission pipelines, warning that federal regulators' implementation of the court's mandate could lead to millions of dollars of unnecessary repair costs for pipeline operators.
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October 16, 2024
Latham-Led Silicon Carbide Biz Lands $2.5B Of New Funding
Silicon carbide technology company Wolfspeed, advised by Latham & Watkins LLP and Smith Anderson, announced that it expects to receive up to $2.5 billion in new funding, through the CHIPS and Science Act and from a consortium that includes private equity giant Apollo, to support the expansion of silicon carbon manufacturing in the U.S.
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October 16, 2024
Georgia EV Battery Manufacturer Settles Fire Suit
A Georgia electric vehicle battery manufacturer has reached a settlement ending a recycling facility's suit alleging it caught fire and burned to the ground last year after the manufacturer allegedly sent hundreds of charged lithium-ion battery scraps to the facility.
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October 16, 2024
M&A Pros Cautious About Expected Private Equity Surge
It's an oft-repeated line that private equity activity is set to surge amid pressure to exit older investments and deploy record stores of dry powder, but mergers and acquisitions professionals recently surveyed by Dykema were cautious when asked if they expect private equity to boost deal flow in the next 12 months, with a majority saying they only "somewhat agree."
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October 16, 2024
Justices Won't Block EPA Power Plant Rule
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rebuffed pleas to block implementation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's latest effort to curb greenhouse gas emissions from power plants while it's being challenged in court, but three justices indicated they had concerns with the rule's legality.
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October 16, 2024
Enforcers Won't Challenge $3B Energy Deal, $5B Coal Tie-Up
Deadlines have passed for antitrust enforcers to challenge Oneok Inc.'s deal for a $3.3 billion stake in EnLink Midstream LLC and Arch Resources Inc.'s all-stock merger with Consol Energy Inc., a deal that's expected to create a natural resources company worth $5.2 billion.
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October 16, 2024
White & Case Adds Energy Pro In Houston From O'Melveny
White & Case LLP has fortified its global project development and finance practice and bolstered its global energy industry group with a partner in Houston who joined from O'Melveny & Myers LLP.
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October 15, 2024
$215M Appeal Could Hinge On Whether Email Changed Deal
An email thread referencing salt standards was not meant to be an enforceable part of a fracking water treatment plant contract, a French water firm told Colorado appellate judges Tuesday in its attempt to avoid a $215 million judgment for breaching those standards.
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October 15, 2024
Tribes, Backers Urge Justices To Take On Oak Flat Dispute
Tribes, religious groups and scholars are backing a bid in the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a Ninth Circuit ruling allowing part of the Tonto National Forest that is sacred to the Western Apache to be destroyed for a copper mine proposed by a Rio Tinto and BHP venture.
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October 15, 2024
DC Circ. Is Asked To Revive Nuke Waste Suit
An anti-nuclear advocacy group is urging the D.C. Circuit to reconsider its support for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's approval of a temporary nuclear waste storage site in New Mexico, arguing that the court's ruling contained "material legal errors."
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October 15, 2024
Spain Claims 2 Energy Arbitration Wins In Intra-EU Disputes
Spain said it has won a first with two arbitral awards favoring the country where International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes tribunals found they did not have the jurisdiction to hear a dispute under the Energy Charter Treaty between a European Union member state and an EU investor.
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October 15, 2024
Standing Rock Sioux Ask Court To Shut Down Dakota Pipeline
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is asking a federal court to block a Texas-based energy company from continuing to operate the Dakota Access Pipeline, arguing its latest emergency response plan fails to include a realistic calculation of a worst-case scenario liquid discharge.
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October 15, 2024
Texas Regulators Oppose Bid To Open Up Texas Grid Projects
The Public Utility Commission of Texas and three electricity companies have fired back at an independent electric transmission developer's attempt to halt a Texas law reserving new power line development for incumbent transmission companies.
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October 15, 2024
Split NC Panel Unties Barge Operations From Utility Oversight
A North Carolina island village can't force its parking space and ferry service provider to obtain regulatory approval from the state's utilities commission before it can divest its barge operations, a split panel of state appeals court judges ruled in a published opinion Tuesday.
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October 15, 2024
Feds Seek Court's OK On $350M Norfolk Southern Spill Deal
The federal government has asked an Ohio federal judge to approve a nearly $350 million settlement to close out the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's legal claims against Norfolk Southern over the fiery February 2023 train derailment and toxic chemical spill in East Palestine.
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October 15, 2024
$5M Alcoa Unit Deal Ends EPA's Smelter Foul-Air Suit
A Washington federal judge on Tuesday approved an Alcoa Corp. subsidiary's $5.25 million settlement with the federal government over the alleged release of illegal levels of pollutants at a now-shuttered Washington aluminum smelting plant.
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October 15, 2024
EPA Says GHG Power Plant Rule Is In 'Heartland' Of Authority
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is urging the D.C. Circuit to approve its plan to control greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, saying its prescribed methods for controlling releases are legally sound, effective, reliable and reasonably affordable for the facilities that must implement them.
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October 15, 2024
3rd Circ. Won't Reinstate Exxon OSHA Whistleblowers
A Third Circuit panel declined Tuesday to enforce an order reinstating two former Exxon Mobil Corp. analysts who claim they were fired after The Wall Street Journal published a report claiming the company overestimated its earnings by billions of dollars, similar to concerns the plaintiffs raised internally before the news report.
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October 15, 2024
US Ups Energy Sanctions On Iran After Israel Missile Attack
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has unveiled expanded sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran, including "new and significant measures to more effectively target Iran's energy trade," following its Oct. 1 missile attack on Israel.
Expert Analysis
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Navigating The New Rise Of Greenwashing Litigation
As greenwashing lawsuits continue to gain momentum with a shift in focus to carbon-neutrality claims, businesses must exercise caution and ensure transparency in their environmental marketing practices, taking cues from recent legal challenges in the airline industry, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.
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In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State
On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.
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How High Court Approached Time Limit On Reg Challenges
The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve Board effectively gives new entities their own personal statute of limitations to challenge rules and regulations, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh's concurrence may portend the court's view that those entities do not need to be directly regulated, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.
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First-Of-Its-Kind Chancery Ruling Will Aid SPAC Defendants
The Delaware Chancery Court's first full dismissal of claims challenging a special purpose acquisition company transaction under the entire fairness doctrine in the recent Hennessy Capital Acquisition Stockholder Litigation establishes useful precedent to abate the flood of SPAC litigation, say Lisa Bugni and Benjamin Lee at King & Spalding.
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Expect The Unexpected: Contracts For Underground Projects
Recent challenges encountered by the Mountain Valley Pipeline project underscore the importance of drafting contracts for underground construction to account for unexpected site conditions, associated risks and compliance with applicable laws, say Jill Jaffe and Brenda Lin at Nossaman.
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How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts
As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.
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Series
Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
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.
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Opinion
Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron
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.
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3 Ways Agencies Will Keep Making Law After Chevron
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.
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Roundup
After Chevron
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.
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Series
After Chevron: Expect Few Changes In ITC Rulemaking
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.
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Opinion
Reform NEPA To Speed Mining Permits, Clean Energy Shift
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.
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Opinion
Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem
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.
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A Case Study For Calif. Cities In Water Utility Takeovers
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.
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Series
Skiing And Surfing Make Me A Better Lawyer
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.