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Environmental
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March 17, 2025
Vague Settlement Can't Free Insurer From Asbestos Claims
An insurer that says its policies' limits were exhausted while paying over $5 million toward an asbestos injury settlement on behalf of BNSF Railway failed to show it actually went over its limits, a Texas appeals court found.
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March 17, 2025
Union, Green Groups Fight EPA Bid To Redo Biden TSCA Rule
Labor unions and green groups are asking the D.C. Circuit to reject the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's bid to reconsider a Biden-era rule that strengthened regulations to assess chemicals' health and environmental risks.
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March 17, 2025
FERC Grid Upgrade Fight Has DC Circ. Judges Flummoxed
D.C. Circuit judges appeared to struggle Monday with how to determine ownership of new grid upgrades needed for a Michigan solar farm as they consider a transmission company's challenge to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's refusal to grant it sole ownership.
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March 17, 2025
NJ Offshore Wind Farm Permit Pulled Over Trump Orders
An environmental permit for a wind power facility off the New Jersey shore has been sent back to regulators for reconsideration in light of President Donald Trump's executive order temporarily halting all offshore wind leases for review, according to a federal environmental appeals board order.
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March 17, 2025
Chevron Buys 5% Of Hess With 'Confidence' In Merger Close
Chevron Corp. disclosed Monday that it has purchased 4.99% of Hess Corp.'s outstanding common stock, a move that signals the oil giant's "continuing confidence" in completing its pending $53 billion acquisition of Hess despite ongoing arbitration challenges.
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March 17, 2025
Simpson Thacher Taps Kirkland Atty To Co-Lead Enviro Group
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP has hired a former Kirkland & Ellis LLP attorney, who is joining the firm in Washington, D.C., to co-lead its environmental practice and continue her work with the environmental issues involved in commercial transactions, the firm announced Monday.
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March 17, 2025
Brightmark Puts Indiana Plastic Recycling Plant Into Ch. 11
Recycling company Brightmark LLC has put certain units into bankruptcy in Delaware in order to keep its Indiana plastics processing center operational as it pursues a sale.
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March 14, 2025
ExxonMobil Brings $14M Clean Air Act Suit To High Court
ExxonMobil on Friday urged the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn both a "radically divided" en banc Fifth Circuit's opinion upholding $14.25 million in air pollution penalties as well as a decades-old high court ruling concerning redressability, saying it was being made to pay penalties environmental group plaintiffs won't even receive.
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March 14, 2025
Fort Worth's Unwieldy PFAS Suit Against Gov't, Cos. Gets Split
A Texas federal judge on Friday ruled that Fort Worth's $420.6 million suit seeking to hold the federal government and various manufacturers liable for PFAS contamination must be split into separate cases, or risk being too unwieldy and confusing for jurors.
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March 14, 2025
Md. Judge Joins Calif. In Reversing Federal Workers' Firing
A Maryland federal judge has ordered the reinstatement of thousands of probationary employees who were abruptly fired from 18 federal agencies, saying the Trump administration's lack of required notice left states "scrambling" to pick up the pieces.
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March 14, 2025
5th Circ. Affirms Energy Exec's Insider Trading Conviction
The Fifth Circuit upheld a Texas energy executive's conviction for insider trading on natural gas futures based on the constitutionality of federal laws and regulations that criminalize manipulative commodity deals.
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March 14, 2025
SpaceX Suit Against Coastal Commission Grounded, For Now
A California federal judge dismissed SpaceX's suit Friday alleging the California Coastal Commission wrongly tried to block its rocket launches, but allowed leave to amend the complaint after warning the company's lawyer he would not grant any leave if he kept up his current line of attack on the suit.
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March 14, 2025
Green Groups Sue Fed. Agencies Over Frozen Funding
Environmental groups sued five federal government agencies and their leaders, alleging they illegally froze congressionally approved funding and are hampering the organizations' work.
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March 14, 2025
11th Circ. Upholds Toss Of Avian Orgs.' Bid To Import Parrots
The Eleventh Circuit on Friday affirmed a judgment against two exotic bird nonprofits trying to get approval to import two parrot species, ruling that the Wild Bird Conservation Act does not allow for a carveout of only captive-bred parrot species from certain countries.
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March 14, 2025
Colo. Jury Rejects Claims Sterilization Co. Caused Cancer
A Colorado jury Friday morning rejected four women's claims that emissions from a Terumo BCT Inc. medical sterilization plant caused their cancer, finding after a six-week bellwether trial that the company was not negligent in how it handled emissions of a toxic sterilization chemical.
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March 14, 2025
6th Circ. Rejects Tribe's Appeal Of Great Lakes Fishing Pact
A Sixth Circuit panel upheld a 2023 decree governing fishery management in the Great Lakes on Thursday, finding that a Michigan federal judge had the prerogative to enter the decree over the objections of a Native American tribe.
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March 14, 2025
Toyota Group Unit Buys Radius Recycling In $1.34B Deal
North American recycler Radius Recycling Inc., advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, has agreed to be bought by a U.S. subsidiary of White & Case LLP-led Toyota Tsusho Corp. in a $1.34 billion deal.
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March 13, 2025
EPA's Deregulation Road Riddled With Potential Potholes
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's plan to unwind dozens of climate change and other pollution control rules confronts the practical reality of laborious federal rulemaking, where any attempted shortcuts may backfire in court.
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March 13, 2025
EPA Tempting Legal Storm With Climate Danger Rethink
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's reconsideration of its 16-year-old conclusion that greenhouse gases threaten human health may face arduous litigation if the agency reverses course, given that the scientific and legal foundations for the finding have strengthened over time.
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March 13, 2025
Feds Can't Pause NYC Congestion Pricing Cases
A New York federal judge denied the federal government's request to prioritize a case filed by Empire State transportation authorities over a newly launched Manhattan congestion pricing program that the Trump administration has moved to kill, saying Thursday the court wouldn't stay other cases over the program that are further along.
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March 13, 2025
Fla. Condo Says Insurers Unfairly Handled Hurricane Claim
A Pensacola Beach condominium complex told a Florida federal court that it is entitled to recover attorney fees and other costs associated with what it alleged was its insurers' failures to fairly handle its claim for Hurricane Sally damage.
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March 13, 2025
Judge Hits 'Reset Button' In 3M, DuPont PFAS Cleanup Case
New Jersey's environmental regulators have tried to force EIDP and DuPont Chemours to begin remediation efforts on "forever chemical" contamination at a former facility in Salem County — which is at the center of ongoing litigation — a move that seemingly undermined a federal judge's authority and put in jeopardy a looming May trial date.
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March 13, 2025
Ore. Tribes Challenge Utility's Eminent Domain Bid
An Oregon Indigenous community is fighting a bid by Portland General Electric Co. to condemn five acres of public land for the maintenance and operation of its hydroelectric project, arguing that the move is a pretext to eliminate its ceremonial fishing platform at the state's largest waterfalls.
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March 13, 2025
Judge Orders Reinstatement Of Many Fired Federal Workers
A California federal judge on Thursday ordered the immediate reinstatement of certain probationary employees fired from six federal agencies, saying the Office of Personnel Management did not have the authority to direct those terminations, making the firings "unlawful."
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March 13, 2025
NY Bill Seeks Tax Break For Residential Green Infrastructure
New York state would provide a partial property tax abatement for owners of residential properties in New York City who undertake green infrastructure projects as part of a bill introduced in the state Senate.
Expert Analysis
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4 Ways Women Attorneys Can Build A Legal Legacy
This Women’s History Month, women attorneys should consider what small, day-to-day actions they can take to help leave a lasting impact for future generations, even if it means mentoring one person or taking 10 minutes to make a plan, says Jackie Prester, a former shareholder at Baker Donelson.
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Cleanup Claim Characterization Key For Timeliness Inquiry
The Tenth Circuit's recent ruling in Atlantic Richfield Co. v. NL Industries, determining that ARCO's contribution claim was timely, highlights the importance of accurately characterizing a claim for recoupment of environmental cleanup costs as a cost-recovery action or contribution to avoid dismissal or recharacterization of the claim, say attorneys at Spencer Fane.
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A Judge's Pointers For Adding Spice To Dry Legal Writing
U.S. District Judge Fred Biery shares a few key lessons about how to go against the grain of the legal writing tradition by adding color to bland judicial opinions, such as by telling a human story and injecting literary devices where possible.
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How To Create A Unique Jury Profile For Every Case
Instead of striking potential jurors based on broad stereotypes or gut feelings, trial attorneys should create case-specific risk profiles that address the political climate, the specific facts of the case and the venue in order to more precisely identify higher-risk jurors, says Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies.
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6th Circ. Ruling Paves Path Out Of Loper Bright 'Twilight Zone'
The U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright ruling created a twilight zone between express statutory delegations that trigger agency deference and implicit ones that do not, but the Sixth Circuit’s recent ruling in Moctezuma-Reyes v. Garland crafted a two-part test for resolving cases within this gray area, say attorneys at Wiley.
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CO2 Oil Recovery Vs. Carbon Capture: Key Legal Differences
As more states seek primacy over carbon capture and storage wells, it is increasingly important for companies to understand the regulations surrounding CCS, and how they differ from the arguably less complex legal framework for the closely related technology of carbon dioxide-enhanced oil recovery, says Sarah Milocco at Husch Blackwell.
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Recent Cases Suggest ESG Means 'Ever-Shifting Guidelines'
U.S. courts have recently handed down a number of contradictory decisions on important environmental, social and governance issues, adding to an already complex mix of conflicting political priorities, new laws and changing regulatory guidance — but there are steps that companies can take to minimize risk, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.
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Navigating The Uncertain Future Of The Superfund PFAS Rule
The D.C. Circuit's recent grant of a pause in litigation while the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reviews the Biden-era designation of two per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances as "hazardous" under the Superfund law creates new uncertainty for companies — but more lawsuits are likely as long as the rule remains in effect, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
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What To Know About Insurance Coverage For Greenwashing
As the number of public and private lawsuits relating to greenwashing dramatically grows, risk managers of companies making environmental claims should look to several types of insurance for coverage in the event of a suit, say attorneys at Hunton.
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7 Tips For Associates To Thrive In Hybrid Work Environments
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
As the vast majority of law firms have embraced some type of hybrid work policy, associates should consider a few strategies to get the most out of both their in-person and remote workdays, says James Argionis at Cozen O’Connor.
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Series
Playing Beach Volleyball Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My commitment to beach volleyball has become integral to my performance as an attorney, with the sport continually reminding me that teamwork, perseverance, professionalism and stress management are essential to both undertakings, says Amy Drushal at Trenam.
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Managing Anti-Corporate Juror Views Revealed By CEO Killing
After the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson laid bare deep-seated anti-corporate sentiments among the public, companies in numerous industries will have to navigate the influence of related juror biases on litigation dynamics, say Jorge Monroy and Keith Pounds at IMS Legal Strategies.
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Opinion
California Climate Lawsuit Bill Is Constitutionally Flawed
A bill in the California Legislature that would let victims of climate-related disasters like the Los Angeles wildfires sue oil and gas producers for spreading misinformation about climate change is too vague, retroactive and focused on one industry to survive constitutional scrutiny, says Kyla Christoffersen Powell at the Civil Justice Association of California.
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How Law Firms Can Counteract The Loneliness Epidemic
The legal industry is facing an urgent epidemic of loneliness, affecting lawyer well-being, productivity, retention and profitability, and law firm leaders should take concrete steps to encourage the development of genuine workplace connections, says Michelle Gomez at Littler and Gwen Mellor Romans at Herald Talent.
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5 Keys To Building Stronger Attorney-Client Relationships
Attorneys are often focused on being seen as the expert, but bonding with clients and prospects by sharing a few key personal details provides the basis for a caring, trusted and profoundly deeper business relationship, says Deb Feder at Feder Development.