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Environmental
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April 05, 2024
US Gas Cos. Delay $7.4B Deal Closing Date Amid FTC Scrutiny
A month after a group of 50 lawmakers urged the Federal Trade Commission to investigate a recent string of mergers and acquisitions in the oil industry, the regulatory agency is putting Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy's planned $7.4 billion merger under the microscope.
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April 04, 2024
NY Congestion Pricing Judge Pleads For Predictability
New Jersey state and local governments fighting New York's congestion toll-pricing vision urged a federal judge on Thursday to order environmental justification for the plan, while the judge in turn implored all parties to rely more heavily on precedent and the law.
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April 04, 2024
NY Judge Says 'Defeat Device' Co. Protected By Section 230
A New York federal judge tossed part of the federal government's lawsuit against the manufacturers of devices and software that allegedly allow vehicles to bypass pollution control mechanisms, saying the technology itself is "neutral" and has no effect on emissions without third-party content.
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April 04, 2024
Homeowner Asks 9th Circ. To Rethink Fire Coverage Ruling
A woman who was prevented from coverage of a 2021 house fire by the Ninth Circuit asked the court to rehear her case, arguing among other things that she did not lie to her insurer about renting her home, because she didn't fill out the insurance application.
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April 04, 2024
ND Judge Tosses DAPL Protester's Claims Against Police
A North Dakota federal judge said he is dismissing claims a woman filed against police after suffering "horrific injuries" when she was hit by a flashbang during the Dakota Access Pipeline protests in 2016.
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April 04, 2024
Steel Talks Absent From Start Of US-EU Trade Ministerial
Conversations on the first day of the EU-U.S. Trade and Technology Council on Thursday focused on sustainability for both the planet and the transatlantic partnership, but noticeably skirted the pair's foundered effort to reshape the global steel market.
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April 04, 2024
NTIA Knocks Out Enviro Hurdles For Broadband Permitting
The list of things that broadband deployment projects will have to conduct in-depth environmental assessments for is getting shorter after the National Telecommunications and Information Administration created 30 new "categorical exclusions" in the hopes of cutting red tape.
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April 04, 2024
Judge Recuses Herself From Cartel Case Over Exxon Stock
A Nevada federal judge has recused herself from a batch of antitrust lawsuits claiming U.S. shale oil producers colluded with OPEC to drive up prices at the pump, citing her ownership of a "significant" amount of Exxon Mobil Corp. stock.
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April 04, 2024
EPA Names Nonprofits To Get $20B From New GHG Fund
At least $20 billion is heading out of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's door to eight nonprofits that will disburse the money for "green" projects such as distributed energy, net-zero buildings, and zero-emissions transportation projects.
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April 04, 2024
W.Va. Plaintiff Drops Telemarketing Claim Against Fla. Firm
A West Virginia woman who alleged in a putative class action that law firms had bombarded her and others with unwanted legal advertising phone calls has announced a joint dismissal with one of the firms involved.
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April 04, 2024
SEC Voluntarily Puts Climate Regs On Ice During Court Battle
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Thursday that it is voluntarily delaying the implementation of climate disclosure regulations while it fights an Eighth Circuit challenge seeking to vacate the rules, with the regulator saying that it hopes the voluntary stay will speed resolution of the case.
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April 04, 2024
Squire Patton Adds Polsinelli Enviro Atty Pair In Denver
Squire Patton Boggs LLP announced Thursday that it had added two former Polsinelli PC attorneys to its global environmental, safety and health practice.
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April 04, 2024
Great Lakes Fishing Pact Tramples Treaty Rights, Tribe Says
The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians is asking the Sixth Circuit to undo a Great Lakes fishing decree between it and four other tribes and the state of Michigan, arguing the decree was entered without its consent and imposes upon its treaty rights.
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April 04, 2024
Project Owners Eager To Sell Energy Tax Credits, Report Says
Project owners are pursuing new financing strategies that would support the early sale of their clean energy tax credits as more projects in their initial development stage this year seek to capitalize on the incentives as early as possible, a report released Thursday said.
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April 03, 2024
Hawaii Bio Power Co. Can't Add Merger-Based Antitrust Claims
A Hawaii federal magistrate judge has refused to permit the addition of new allegations, based on a 2017 fossil fuel plant acquisition, to a recently restarted lawsuit accusing the state's largest power company of anticompetitively canceling a contract for a new biomass energy plant.
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April 03, 2024
Roadless Rule Doesn't Suit The Tongass, Alaska, Allies Argue
The state of Alaska, electric utilities, and a coalition of towns, mining and business groups, as well as a former Last Frontier governor, are all urging a federal judge to overturn the Biden administration's decision to reinstate roadless area protections for millions of acres of the Tongass National Forest.
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April 03, 2024
EU Probing Solar Project Under Foreign Subsidy Rules
European enforcers launched a pair of investigations Wednesday to assess whether companies bidding on a solar project in Romania received an unfair advantage through foreign subsidies.
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April 03, 2024
NJ Judge Grants Initial OK Of $2.7M EV Maker Investor Deal
A New Jersey federal judge granted preliminary approval to a $2.7 million deal between investors and executives of an electric vehicle company after it went bankrupt, after finding his prior hesitations concerning the deal's notice plan had been resolved.
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April 03, 2024
Industry Groups Ask DC Circ. To Toss EPA Smog Plan
Industry groups have urged the D.C. Circuit to strike down the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's plan to reduce smog-forming emissions in several states, saying the federal agency cannot forge ahead with a diminished version of the regulations.
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April 03, 2024
Fed. Circ. Struggles With Ambiguity In $14M Army Corps Row
Federal Circuit judges struggled Wednesday to understand ambiguous terms in a company's contract with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for post-hurricane power restoration, indicating that neither party had clearly explained if the contractor has a valid $14 million claim for additional work needed.
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April 03, 2024
ITC To Pay $6.6M To DOJ, Texas Over 2019 Chemical Fire
The owner of a chemical storage facility has agreed to pay more than $6.6 million in connection with natural resource damage stemming from a 2019 fire that burned for six days at a plant southeast of Houston, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday.
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April 03, 2024
Enviro Group Sues DOE Over $1.1B Diablo Canyon Award
Environmental group Friends of the Earth slapped the U.S. Department of Energy with a complaint in California federal court seeking to unravel the agency's $1.1 billion award for the continued operation of the state's last remaining nuclear power plant.
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April 03, 2024
EPA Faces Down Water Rule Challenge In Texas
The federal government has asked a Texas federal judge to toss lawsuits filed by Texas, Idaho and more than a dozen industry groups challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers' rule defining the extent of the Clean Water Act's reach.
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April 03, 2024
5th Circ. Unsure Miners Can Escape Pecan Farm Flood Verdict
Fifth Circuit judges on Wednesday suggested that the owner of an open gravel mine on the bank of the Colorado River could have a tough time in its bid to avoid responsibility for devastating flooding at a pecan farm across the river.
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April 03, 2024
Gov't Says Alaska Gold Mine Approvals Should Stand
The U.S. government is defending its approvals for a large open-pit gold mine along the Kuskokwim River in southwest Alaska, telling a federal judge a half dozen tribes challenging them fail to show that agencies did not take the required "hard look" at project impacts.
Expert Analysis
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Djerassi On Super Bowl 52
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Ramy Djerassi discusses how Super Bowl 52, in which the Philadelphia Eagles prevailed over the New England Patriots, provides an apt metaphor for alternative dispute resolution processes in commercial business cases.
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Considerations For Lawyer Witnesses After FTX Trial
Sam Bankman-Fried's recent trial testimony about his lawyers' involvement in FTX's business highlights the need for attorney-witnesses to understand privilege issues in order to avoid costly discovery disputes and, potentially, uncover critical evidence an adversary might seek to conceal, says Lawrence Bluestone at Genova Burns.
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Parsing Treasury's Proposed Clean Hydrogen Tax Credit Rules
Regulations recently proposed by the IRS and the U.S. Department of the Treasury concerning two types of tax credits for clean hydrogen production facilities should resolve many of the most pressing questions around qualification for the credits — albeit in a relatively stringent manner, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Employee Experience Strategy Can Boost Law Firm Success
Amid continuing business uncertainty, law firms should consider adopting a holistic employee experience strategy — prioritizing consistency, targeting signature moments and leveraging measurement tools — to maximize productivity and profitability, says Haley Revel at Calibrate Consulting.
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How Consumer Product Cos. Can Keep Up With Class Actions
Recent cases show California's federal courts and the Ninth Circuit remain the preferred arena for consumers pursuing false advertising and trade deception claims against companies — so manufacturers, distributors and retailers of consumer products should continue to watch these courts for guidance on how to fight class actions, say attorneys at Dechert.
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Series
Competing In Triathlons Makes Me A Better Lawyer
While practicing law and competing in long-distance triathlons can make work and life feel unbalanced at times, participating in the sport has revealed important lessons about versatility, self-care and perseverance that apply to the office as much as they do the racecourse, says Laura Heusel at Butler Snow.
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Where Justices Stand On Chevron Doctrine Post-Argument
Following recent oral argument at the U.S. Supreme Court, at least four justices appear to be in favor of overturning the long-standing Chevron deference, and three justices seem ready to uphold it, which means the ultimate decision may rest on Chief Justice John Roberts' vote, say Wayne D'Angelo and Zachary Lee at Kelley Drye.
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The Competing Goals Of Environmental And Bankruptcy Laws
Recent economic pressures combined with environmental liabilities have led to some of the largest bankruptcy filings in U.S. history, meaning debtors and creditors should be aware of the challenges, conflicts and uncertainties that arise at the intersection of these two legal fields, say Andrew Gallo and Duke McCall at Morgan Lewis.
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Perspectives
6 Practice Pointers For Pro Bono Immigration Practice
An attorney taking on their first pro bono immigration matter may find the law and procedures beguiling, but understanding key deadlines, the significance of individual immigration judges' rules and specialized aspects of the practice can help avoid common missteps, says Steven Malm at Haynes Boone.
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Series
ESG Around The World: Canada
In Canada, multiple statutes, regulations, common law and industry guidance address environmental, social and governance considerations, with debate over ESG in the business realm potentially growing on the horizon, say attorneys at Blakes.
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Lessons From Country Singer's Personal Service Saga
Recent reports that country singer Luke Combs won a judgment against a Florida woman who didn’t receive notice of the counterfeit suit against her should serve as a reminder for attorneys on best practices for effectuating service by electronic means, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.
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Opinion
Farm Bill Gives Congress 2024's Biggest Enviro Opportunity
A new Farm Bill, which Congress hopes to get out before mid-2024, is the main legislative opportunity to accelerate the adoption of environmentally friendly practices, as the major environmental laws have been interpreted largely to exempt agriculture from pollution standards that other industries must meet, say Peter Lehner and Carrie Apfel at Earthjustice.
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What To Expect From High Court In Corp. Disclosure Case
Oral argument in Macquarie v. Moab Partners — a case with the potential to significantly alter corporate disclosures and private securities litigation liability — suggests that the U.S. Supreme Court is focused on answering the narrow question presented, say Elizabeth Gingold Clark and Madeleine Juszynski Davidson at Alston & Bird.
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After Watershed Year, Clean Hydrogen Faces New Challenges
Clean hydrogen is on the verge of taking off — but over the course of 2023, it became clear that the regulatory landscape will be more stringent than expected, and the cost and timing of major projects will depend on a number of key developments anticipated in 2024, say attorneys at Weil.
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Series
Baking Bread Makes Me A Better Lawyer
After many years practicing law, and a few years baking bread, I have learned that there are a few keys to success in both endeavors, including the assembly of a nourishing and resilient culture, and the ability to learn from failure and exercise patience, says Rick Robinson at Reed Smith.