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Environmental
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January 29, 2025
White House Rescinds Trump's Spending Freeze
The White House on Wednesday rescinded a directive freezing federal funding, saying it wants to end litigation and confusion, but said the move will not end a review of spending to ensure compliance with a series of executive orders by the president.
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January 28, 2025
Trump Tells Federal Workers They're Welcome To Resign
The Trump administration on Tuesday emailed about 2 million federal employees offering them the option to resign but continue to be paid to the end of September, in an effort to implement a campaign promise to drastically cut the federal workforce and only keep employees who are "loyal" and "trustworthy."
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January 28, 2025
Norfolk Southern Cuts $22M Derailment Deal With Ohio Village
Norfolk Southern Corp. has reached a $22 million settlement with East Palestine, Ohio, to resolve claims over the 2023 train derailment and chemical spill near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border, according to a joint statement published on the village's website Monday.
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January 28, 2025
Energy Co. Seeks Abeyance In Dakota Access Pipeline Row
The operator of the Dakota Access Pipeline has asked the D.C. federal district court to suspend a South Dakota tribe's suit to shut down the pipeline's use until the court first rules on the tribe and federal government's competing motions for summary judgment.
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January 28, 2025
FCC Scraps Reg Plan For Cell Tower Enviro Reviews
The Federal Communications Commission's new Republican chief said Tuesday the agency was dropping a plan launched during the Biden administration to more rigorously vet cell tower building projects for environmental impacts.
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January 28, 2025
SoCal Edison Faces More Suits Over Eaton Blaze
At least two more lawsuits were filed in California state court against Southern California Edison, alleging the investor-owned public utility is responsible for sparking the devastating Eaton Fire that began Jan. 7 and destroyed most of Altadena, California, killing at least 17 people.
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January 28, 2025
New FERC Chair Backs Status Quo For Gas Project Reviews
Newly minted Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Mark Christie told Law360 in an exclusive interview that he sees no reason to change the approval process for gas infrastructure projects despite recent court rulings that have dinged FERC for legally inadequate reviews.
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January 28, 2025
Feds, Enviro Orgs. Look To Sink Farm's 'Swampbuster' Challenge
The federal government and environmental groups have asked an Iowa federal court to reject a farm owner's effort to overturn the "Swampbuster" conservation law that aims to protect wetlands in agricultural areas.
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January 28, 2025
NJ Targets MTA's Changes In Revised Congestion-Pricing Suit
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy plans to target New York City's public transit agency and the altered toll amounts in the state's renewed legal challenge to congestion pricing, according to a proposed amended complaint.
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January 28, 2025
Ariz. Judge Rejects Monument Challenge Due To Mining Ban
A federal district court judge dismissed the Arizona State Legislature's challenge to former President Joe Biden's proclamation that established an Indigenous site in the Grand Canyon region as a national monument, saying the lawmakers failed to show how the order would harm the state's mining revenue-related interests.
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January 28, 2025
Senate Confirms Sean Duffy As DOT Secretary
The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed former Wisconsin congressman Sean Duffy to be secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
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January 28, 2025
Cravath, Ropes & Gray Guide $2.4B Connecticut Water Deal
Ropes & Gray LLP and Cravath Swaine & Moore LLP are leading a $2.4 billion deal that will see public energy company Eversource Energy sell subsidiary Aquarion Water Co., a public water supply and wastewater treatment company, to a unit of the state of Connecticut.
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January 28, 2025
Environmental Group Of The Year: Baron & Budd
Baron & Budd PC's attorneys over the past year secured billions of dollars from some of the world's biggest chemical companies to help reduce U.S. residents' exposure to toxic forever chemicals, work that took years to complete and that earned the firm a spot as one of the 2024 Law360 Environmental Groups of the Year.
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January 28, 2025
Judge Temporarily Halts Trump's Funding Freeze
A D.C. federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a Trump administration freeze on federal spending that was set to go into effect at 5 p.m., as a group of nearly two dozen attorneys general filed a separate case challenging what they described as an illegal and potentially catastrophic move.
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January 28, 2025
Calif. Bill Targets Oil Cos. For Climate Disaster Costs
A Democratic lawmaker in California has introduced a bill aimed at improving insurance affordability in the state by allowing insurers and victims of natural disasters to pursue action against oil and gas companies for their role in fueling the climate crisis.
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January 28, 2025
NY Battery Startup Hits Ch. 11 With $136M Debt, Sale Plans
Electric vehicle and renewable energy storage lithium-ion battery maker iM3NY filed for bankruptcy protection in Delaware, reporting around $136 million in debt after it wasn't able to drum up new funding for a battery production plant in New York.
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January 27, 2025
Anadarko Prevails In La. Kickback Defense Coverage Suit
An environmental remediation company should defend and indemnify Anadarko Petroleum Corp. in a decade-old Louisiana kickback lawsuit, a Texas federal court judge has ruled.
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January 27, 2025
SoCal Edison To Leave Power Off Amid Eaton Fire Litigation
Southern California Edison agreed Monday that it won't re-energize the power lines leading to the site of this month's deadly Eaton Fire for three more weeks, after plaintiffs' firm Edelson PC obtained a video that appears to show electrical sparks near the utility's equipment just before the fire began.
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January 27, 2025
Alaskan Co. Says Texas Firm Bungled Wash. Dam Scaffolding
An Alaska Native-owned corporation is claiming a Texas firm supplied faulty underwater scaffolding designs that allegedly caused a structural collapse at a Pacific Northwest dam, exposing one of the corporation's subsidiaries to a demand of more than $1.4 million from the project's lead contractor.
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January 27, 2025
Enbridge Urges Line 5 Judge To Stall For Trump Admin Talks
Enbridge Energy LP suggested Monday that a judge should "sit tight" rather than immediately rule on the merits of Michigan's lawsuit over its Line 5 pipeline to give the new U.S. presidential administration time to reach a resolution with Canada in the long-running dispute.
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January 27, 2025
Buddhist Group Wants Army Corps Everglades Plan Blocked
A Buddhist community asked a Florida federal court to block construction on an Everglades restoration water retention project, arguing its concerns that the project will make its adjacent religious retreat center unusable have fallen on deaf ears at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
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January 27, 2025
Drone Co., Media Biz And Tire-Maker Announce SPAC Mergers
Three overseas companies spanning industries from drones to fashion media and tire manufacturing announced plans on Monday to go public in the U.S. by merging with special purpose acquisition companies in deals projected to exceed $1.1 billion in value, guided by at least eight law firms.
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January 27, 2025
Fed Fisheries Seek Win In Tide Gate Fight Over Salmon
The National Marine Fisheries Service has sought an early win in a suit by a county dike district challenging a U.S. government biological opinion that says a proposed tide gate project endangers salmon, telling a Washington federal judge that its ecological findings are reasonable.
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January 27, 2025
Norfolk Southern Can't Block Expert Testimony On Derailment
A railcar inspector with over 45 years of experience is clear to testify against Norfolk Southern in litigation over the 2023 train derailment and chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, a federal judge has ruled, rejecting the rail company's argument that he was not qualified to opine on certain train safety equipment.
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January 27, 2025
Holland & Hart Names New Senior Director Of Federal Affairs
Holland & Hart LLP said Monday that it is bolstering its federal affairs team with the addition of a lobbyist who previously led the energy and environment practice at Cassidy & Associates.
Expert Analysis
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How Methods Are Evolving In Textualist Interpretations
Textualists at the U.S. Supreme Court are increasingly considering new methods such as corpus linguistics and surveys to evaluate what a statute's text communicates to an ordinary reader, while lower courts even mull large language models like ChatGPT as supplements, says Kevin Tobia at Georgetown Law.
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5 Ways To Confront Courtroom Technology Challenges
Recent cybersecurity incidents highlight the vulnerabilities of our reliance on digital infrastructure, meaning attorneys must be prepared to navigate technological obstacles inside the courtroom, including those related to data security, presentation hardware, video playback and more, says Adam Bloomberg at IMS Legal Strategies.
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ESA Ruling May Jeopardize Gulf Of Mexico Drilling Operations
A Maryland federal court's recent decision in Sierra Club v. National Marine Fisheries Service, vacating key Endangered Species Act analyses of oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico, may create a gap in guidance that could expose operators to enforcement risk and even criminal liability, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.
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Why Attorneys Should Consider Community Leadership Roles
Volunteering and nonprofit board service are complementary to, but distinct from, traditional pro bono work, and taking on these community leadership roles can produce dividends for lawyers, their firms and the nonprofit causes they support, says Katie Beacham at Kilpatrick.
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Firms Must Offer A Trifecta Of Services In Post-Chevron World
After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision overturning Chevron deference, law firms will need to integrate litigation, lobbying and communications functions to keep up with the ramifications of the ruling and provide adequate counsel quickly, says Neil Hare at Dentons.
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5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond
As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.
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Opinion
Portland's Gross Receipts Tax Oversteps City's Authority
Recent measures by Portland, Oregon, that expand the voter-approved scope of the Clean Energy Surcharge on certain retail sales eviscerate the common meaning of the word "retail" and exceed the city's chartered authority to levy tax, say Nikki Dobay at Greenberg Traurig and Jeff Newgard at Peak Policy.
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Series
After Chevron: SEC Climate And ESG Rules Likely Doomed
Under the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Loper Bright, without agency deference, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate disclosure and environmental, social and governance rules would likely be found lacking in statutory support and vacated by the courts, says Justin Chretien at Carlton Fields.
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When Trauma Colors Testimony: How To Help Witnesses
As stress-related mental health issues continue to rise, trial attorneys must become familiar with a few key trauma-informed strategies to help witnesses get back on track — leaning in to the counselor aspect of their vocations, say Ava Hernández and Steve Wood at Courtroom Sciences.
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Series
Being An Opera Singer Made Me A Better Lawyer
My journey from the stage to the courtroom has shown that the skills I honed as an opera singer – punctuality, memorization, creativity and more – have all played a vital role in my success as an attorney, says Gerard D'Emilio at GableGotwals.
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Navigating The Uncertain Landscape Of Solar Tariffs
Solar cell and module manufacturers, exporters and importers must navigate an uncertain compliance landscape, given ongoing challenges to U.S. Department of Commerce antidumping and countervailing duty determinations, which have been mounted both by U.S. and non-U.S. manufacturers, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Amid SEC Rule Limbo, US Cos. Subject To ESG Regs In EU
Though the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is facing legal challenges to its climate-disclosure rulemaking, the implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive in the European Union will force U.S. companies to comply with exactly the kinds of ESG disclosures that are not yet mandated in the U.S., say attorneys at Squire Patton.
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How Law Firms Can Avoid 'Collaboration Drag'
Law firm decision making can be stifled by “collaboration drag” — characterized by too many pointless meetings, too much peer feedback and too little dissent — but a few strategies can help stakeholders improve decision-making processes and build consensus, says Steve Groom at Miles Mediation.
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When The Supreme Court Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade
Instead of grousing about the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions overturning long-standing precedents, attorneys should look to history for examples of how enterprising legal minds molded difficult decisions to their advantage, and figure out how to work with the cards they’ve been dealt, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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Opinion
Litigation Funding Disclosure Key To Open, Impartial Process
Blanket investor and funding agreement disclosures should be required in all civil cases where the investor has a financial interest in the outcome in order to address issues ranging from potential conflicts of interest to national security concerns, says Bob Goodlatte, former U.S. House Representative for Virginia.