Environmental

Expert Analysis

• What To Expect Under New SEC Enforcement Director Grewal

  

  Newly appointed U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Director of Enforcement Gurbir Grewal’s record as a public servant provides insight into the SEC’s likely priorities for the coming year, and firms should expect him to work closely with Chair Gary Gensler in pursuing an aggressive enforcement agenda, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• White House Vision For Carbon Capture Faces Obstacles

  

  A recent White House Council on Environmental Quality report suggests policies that could bolster carbon capture and storage projects in the U.S., but federal and state regulators and the private sector will face red tape, environmental justice concerns and other challenges in expanding CCS infrastructure, say Ethan Shenkman and Sarah Grey at Arnold & Porter.

• Law Firms, Know Who's Responsible For Your Cloud Security

  

  Lawyers generally know that files go into the cloud and that the files are then secured and protected, but it's necessary for firms to take a closer look at their cloud supply chain and then come up with a responsibility matrix that helps mitigate any potential risks or weaknesses, says Martin Ward at iManage.

• Benefits For Law Firms Venturing Into New Services

  

  By offering more services, law firms can deepen and strengthen their client relationships and truly become an extension of their clients' teams while generating new revenue streams, and while there are risks associated with expanding into consulting, they may be worth it, says Lou Ramos at Major Lindsey.

• Green Investments Are Not Immune To ESG Scrutiny

  

  As investment informed and motivated by environmental, social and governance considerations accelerates, companies and investors in the green technology sector must keep in mind that regulators, consumers and communities will not grant them free passes on the full range of ESG concerns, say Michael Murphy and Kyle Guest at Gibson Dunn.

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  Embracing ESG: Exelon GC Talks Diversity Initiatives

  

  Executing a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion programming, through recruitment, inclusive legal pipelines and community empowerment via pro bono efforts, can ensure a strong environmental, social and governance proposition, says Gayle Littleton at Exelon.

• Methane Rule Changes Add Complexity For Oil And Gas Cos.

  

  President Joe Biden's recent move to reinstitute regulation of methane under the federal New Source Performance Standards, thus rolling back changes made by the prior administration, creates additional compliance challenges for oil and gas transportation and storage companies, say Whit Swift and Brittany Pemberton at Bracewell.

• Revamping Law Firm Marketing Lists — With Partner Buy-In

  

  Jackson Lewis’ Paige Bowser shares lessons from the firm's recent overhaul of an outdated email marketing database, including tips for getting partners on board, ensuring compliance with privacy laws and augmenting outreach strategies.

• The Murky World Of Legal Rankings Gets Some Clarity In NJ

  

  New Jersey's new, stringent approach to legal rankings will make accolade advertising more transparent, benefiting both attorneys and clients and offering legal marketers a new set of best practices amid evolving standards, say Penny Paul at Lowenstein Sandler and Susan Peters at Greybridge.

• Justices' Biofuel Exemption Ruling Boosts Small Refineries

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in HollyFrontier Cheyenne Refining v. Renewable Fuels Association, enabling the revival of lapsed exemptions from biofuel requirements under the Clean Air Act, gives small oil refineries added flexibility, says Scott Press at Goldberg Segalla.

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  Embracing ESG: Cigna Counsel Talks Employee Wellness

  

  Building employee well-being into corporate environmental, social and governance priorities required our legal team to focus more closely on cross-functional collaboration within the company and increased communication with our board of directors and shareholders, says Julia Brncic at Cigna.

• 5 Steps For Legal Teams To Mitigate Industrial Cyber Risk

  

  While cyberattacks on critical infrastructure and other industrial systems present distinct legal risks from traditional enterprise cybersecurity, legal teams can draw upon familiar risk management practices to strengthen their industrial cybersecurity posture, say Stephen Lilley and Veronica Glick at Mayer Brown and Ben Miller at Dragos.

• Nuclear Energy And Environmental Justice In The Biden Era

  

  While President Joe Biden's greenhouse gas reduction goals create a major opportunity for the nuclear energy sector, the administration's environmental justice initiatives mean that the industry must be conscious of its impacts on the communities where it operates, say Benjamin Wilson and Hilary Jacobs at Beveridge & Diamond.

• Hybrid Work Models Are Key To Gender Parity In Law Firms

  

  To curb the historically high rates of attrition among female lawyers, Roberta Liebenberg at Fine Kaplan and Stephanie Scharf at Scharf Banks suggest firms must normalize hybrid work schedules, and they recommend best practices to promote engagement among all attorneys, regardless of where they work.

• 3 Roadblocks Facing Electric Vehicle Adoption In US

  

  While a flurry of auto manufacturers recently committed to all-electric fleets in the coming decades, widespread electric vehicle adoption in the U.S. faces critical challenges, and addressing these issues will require both political will and funding at the federal level — neither of which is guaranteed, says Kevin Chen at Foley Hoag.