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Environmental
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August 16, 2024
Kentucky Couple Sue Progressive Over Coal Mine Subsidence
A couple told a Kentucky federal court that Progressive denied coverage for coal mine subsidence damage to their home in bad faith, saying the insurer did so despite having access to records showing that the state authorized a $1.8 million project to help fix that very subsidence.
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August 16, 2024
NC AG Readies Appeal In Fight Over Smithfield Foods Funds
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein is taking a fight over millions of dollars in environmental grants to the state appeals court, after a trial judge found the funds should be exclusively set aside for use in public schools.
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August 16, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen Barry Manilow sued by music rights company Hipgnosis, a struck-off immigration lawyer take on the Solicitor's Disciplinary Tribunal and the former CEO of a collapsed bridging loan firm start proceedings against the FCA. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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August 15, 2024
Green Group Backs Feds' Denial Of Water Co.'s Right-Of-Way
Save Our Forest Association urged a D.C. federal judge on Thursday to reject the company behind Arrowhead Mountain Spring Water's attempt to block the federal government from requiring it cease operation of its 23,000-foot-long water pipeline in Berkeley, California's Strawberry Canyon.
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August 15, 2024
DC Circ. Explains Toss Of EPA's Biofuel Exemptions Denial
The Environmental Protection Agency's narrow interpretation of what defines an economic hardship wrongly shut dozens of small oil refineries out of receiving federal renewable fuel blending requirement exemptions, according to a per curiam D.C. Circuit opinion unsealed this week.
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August 15, 2024
Judge Rejects GE's Bid To Pull Plug On Contamination Suit
A Louisiana federal judge on Wednesday refused to let General Electric escape a lawsuit alleging it is liable for widespread environmental contamination caused by a now-closed pressure valve manufacturing facility that GE used to own.
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August 15, 2024
Monsanto Gets 3rd Circ. Win In Roundup Failure-To-Warn Case
The Third Circuit ruled Thursday that a Pennsylvania state law failure-to-warn claim in a suit alleging the weed killer Roundup caused a Keystone State man's cancer is preempted by federal law, creating a circuit split on central issues in multidistrict litigation over the Monsanto product.
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August 15, 2024
Interior Department Grants $775M To Plug Oil And Gas Wells
The U.S. Department of the Interior said it's making up to $775 million available for 21 eligible states to plug orphaned oil and gas wells to curb harmful methane leaks and reduce risks to the environment and public health.
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August 15, 2024
Deals Rumor Mill: Paramount, Blackstone, Starbucks
The heir to Canadian liquor purveyor Seagram is preparing a bid for Paramount's parent company, Blackstone explores a potential $2.6 billion sale of Clarion Events, and activist investor Starboard sets sights on Starbucks. Here, Law360 breaks down these and other notable deal rumors from the past week.
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August 15, 2024
Prof Rips DOJ, VW's 9th Circ. Bid To Shield Jones Day Docs
A Loyola Marymount University professor has urged the Ninth Circuit to shut down the U.S. Department of Justice and Volkswagen AG's relentless "obfuscation" in a long-running dispute over access to confidential Volkswagen documents that were part of a Jones Day investigation into the automaker's 2015 emissions-cheating scandal.
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August 15, 2024
Levi & Korsinsky To Lead Hertz EV Cost Shareholder Suit
Levi & Korsinsky LLP will represent a proposed class of investors in car rental giant Hertz Global Holdings Inc. in litigation alleging it exaggerated demand for electric cars, then took a $200 million earnings hit as it worked to offload those cars.
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August 15, 2024
DC Judge Restarts Border Wall Suit After Deal Scuttled
A D.C. federal judge has resumed a suit over border wall damage on Arizona ranch lands after the ranches and the Biden administration said a Texas injunction in a different case upended a potential settlement in this one.
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August 15, 2024
Colorado, Suncor Back EPA In Denver Refinery Permit Fight
Colorado and Suncor Energy USA Inc. told the Tenth Circuit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was right to refuse to object to a series of permit changes state regulators approved for the company's Denver-area oil refinery, as fights over the facility's emissions are heating up.
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August 15, 2024
Carrier Wraps Strategic Exit Plan With $3B Sale Of Fire Units
Carrier Global Corp. said Thursday it has inked an agreement to sell its commercial and residential fire units to an affiliate of Lone Star Funds at an enterprise value of $3 billion, completing the company's strategic plan to sell off several business units and focus on its core ventilation business.
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August 14, 2024
Fed. Circ. Won't Rehear Utah Tribe's Water Dispute
A Federal Circuit panel refused to rehear a Utah tribe's challenge to the U.S. government that looked to overturn a Federal Claims Court ruling that held it didn't violate a 19th century law by not securing new water and infrastructure rights for the Indigenous community.
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August 14, 2024
Costco Wants PFAS Kirkland Brand Baby Wipes Suit Tossed
Costco hit back at a proposed class action over its fragrance-free "natural" baby wipes filed earlier this summer in California federal court, saying that the suit is trying to scare parents by alleging the wipes are tainted with so-called forever chemicals.
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August 14, 2024
Oregon Gets New 600-Acre Wildlife Refuge
Oregon is home to a new 600-acre wildlife refuge in the Willamette Valley between Salem and Eugene intended to preserve a variety of animal and plant species, the U.S. Department of the Interior said Tuesday.
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August 14, 2024
HHS Calls For More Research, Planning To Combat Heat Risks
Citing a sharp increase in deaths from extreme heat, the Biden administration unveiled a national strategy Wednesday that calls for better communicating the health risks of hot weather to the public and taking other steps to protect people from life-threatening heat waves.
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August 14, 2024
Kroger Hit With Prop 65 Suit Over Metals In Snacks, Cinnamon
Kroger and Ralphs sell roasted seaweed snacks and ground cinnamon containing cadmium and lead, which are known to cause cancer and reproductive toxicity, without warning consumers in violation of Proposition 65, according to a complaint filed in California state court by a consumer protection group.
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August 14, 2024
Michigan's Airport PFAS Pollution Suit Escapes Foam MDL
A Michigan federal judge has agreed to disentangle state regulators' PFAS pollution claims against an airport from claims against manufacturers of the chemicals, a move that prevents the state's case from being absorbed into multidistrict litigation over firefighting foam.
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August 14, 2024
10th Circ. Wipes Out Fight Over Obama-Era Methane Rule
The Tenth Circuit has thrown out a lower court ruling partially invalidating an Obama-era rule limiting venting and flaring from oil and gas wells on federal land, saying a new rule crafted by the Biden administration moots the entire case.
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August 14, 2024
Judge Reconsiders Stop To Colo. River Transfer Without EIS
An Arizona federal judge on Tuesday reinstated water sale contracts between a company-owned farm on the Colorado River and a town more than a hundred miles away, agreeing with the federal government that his prior decision to void them would cause too much trouble.
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August 14, 2024
Judge Blocks Missouri's Anti-ESG Rules, Handing SIFMA Win
A Missouri federal judge found Wednesday that the state's anti-ESG rules for brokers and advisers violate the First Amendment and are preempted by federal laws, handing the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association an early win in its suit against state officials.
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August 14, 2024
The Biggest Enviro Decisions Of 2024: Midyear Report
2024 has already been one of the most consequential years for environmental law, and it's only half over. The U.S. Supreme Court issued groundbreaking administrative law decisions, while lower appeals courts resolved questions about California's right to promulgate its own vehicle emissions standards, among other rulings.
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August 14, 2024
Santa Monica Sues 3M, DuPont Over PFAS Contamination
The city of Santa Monica, California, has hit 3M, DuPont de Nemours Inc., RTX Corp., formerly known as Raytheon, and more than a dozen other companies with a suit over PFAS contamination stemming from the use of aqueous film-forming firefighting foams.
Expert Analysis
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2 Vital Trial Principles Endure Amid Tech Advances
Progress in trial technologies in the last 10 years has been transformative for courtroom presentations, but two core communication axioms are still relevant in today's world of drone footage evidence and 3D animations, say Adam Bloomberg and Lisa Walters at IMS Legal Strategies.
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Mirror, Mirror On The Wall, Is My Counterclaim Bound To Fall?
A Pennsylvania federal court’s recent dismissal of the defendants’ counterclaims in Morgan v. Noss should remind attorneys to avoid the temptation to repackage a claim’s facts and law into a mirror-image counterclaim, as this approach will often result in a waste of time and resources, says Matthew Selmasska at Kaufman Dolowich.
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Nuclear Power Can Help Industrial Plants Get To Net-Zero
In the race to fight climate change and achieve net-zero emissions, the industrial sector currently faces immense challenges — but the integration of nuclear energy is a promising solution, so companies should consider the financial and regulatory issues, opportunities, and risk-mitigating factors, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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6 Factors That Can Make For A 'Nuclear' Juror
Drawing from recent research that examines the rise in nuclear verdicts, Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies identifies a few juror characteristics most likely to matter in assessing case risk and preparing for jury selection — some of which are long-known, and others that are emerging post-pandemic.
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Series
Playing Dungeons & Dragons Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Playing Dungeons & Dragons – a tabletop role-playing game – helped pave the way for my legal career by providing me with foundational skills such as persuasion and team building, says Derrick Carman at Robins Kaplan.
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Class Action Law Makes An LLC A 'Jurisdictional Platypus'
The applicability of Section 1332(d)(10) of the Class Action Fairness Act is still widely misunderstood — and given the ambiguous nature of limited liability companies, the law will likely continue to confound courts and litigants — so parties should be prepared for a range of outcomes, says Andrew Gunem at Strauss Borrelli.
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3 Leadership Practices For A More Supportive Firm Culture
Traditional leadership styles frequently amplify the inherent pressures of legal work, but a few simple, time-neutral strategies can strengthen the skills and confidence of employees and foster a more collaborative culture, while supporting individual growth and contribution to organizational goals, says Benjamin Grimes at BKG Leadership.
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Rebuttal
Cancer Research Org. Is Right To Avoid Corporate Influence
While a previous Law360 guest article criticizes the International Agency for Research on Cancer's processes, its reliance on peer-reviewed literature is proper and its refusal to allow corporate influence is sound science, say Lance Oliver and Ridge Mazingo at Motley Rice.
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Attorneys Can Benefit From Reverse-Engineering Their Cases
Trial advocacy programs often teach lawyers to loosely track the progression of a lawsuit during preparation — case analysis, then direct examination, then cross-examination, openings and closings — but reverse-engineering cases by working backward from opening and closing statements can streamline the process and also improve case strategy, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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How Courts' Differing Views On Standing Affect PFAS Claims
Two recent opinions from New York federal courts — in Lurenz v. Coca-Cola, and Winans v. Ornua Foods North America — illustrate how pivotal the differing views on standing held by different courts will be for product liability litigation involving per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, particularly consumer claims, say attorneys at Hollingsworth.
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New State Carbon Capture Laws: Key Points For Developers
Multiple states have introduced or expanded legal frameworks for carbon capture and sequestration this year, and while there are some common themes, many of these state laws include unique approaches and requirements — which developers and investors should be aware of when considering potential projects and investment risks, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.
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E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Hyperlinked Documents
Recent rulings show that counsel should engage in early discussions with clients regarding the potential of hyperlinked documents in electronically stored information, which will allow for more deliberate negotiation of any agreements regarding the scope of discovery, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Loper Bright Limits Federal Agencies' Ability To Alter Course
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to dismantle Chevron deference also effectively overrules its 2005 decision in National Cable & Telecommunications Association v. Brand X, greatly diminishing agencies' ability to change regulatory course from one administration to the next, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.
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New NHTSA Fuel Economy Rule Adds Compliance Complexity
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recently announced final rule on new corporate average fuel economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks will create challenges for manufacturers, which must also comply with the EPA's multipollutant rule and California's zero-emission vehicle programs, say Joanne Rotondi and Hannah Graae at Hogan Lovells.
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Series
Teaching Scuba Diving Makes Me A Better Lawyer
As a master scuba instructor, I’ve learned how to prepare for the unexpected, overcome fears and practice patience, and each of these skills – among the many others I’ve developed – has profoundly enhanced my work as a lawyer, says Ron Raether at Troutman Pepper.