Environmental

  • September 15, 2025

    EPA Backs Off Drinking Water Regs For 4 PFAS

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has asked the D.C. Circuit to vacate part of its rule setting drinking water standards for certain forever chemicals, saying it now believes that those shouldn't have been included in a Biden-era rule.

  • September 15, 2025

    9th Circ. Says Ore. Water Rights Case Is Still Relevant

    The Ninth Circuit won't dismiss the Klamath Irrigation District's appeal over water releases from an Oregon lake as moot, saying a decision would provide relief by affecting how the scarce resource is allocated regardless of the federal government's new position on the application of the Endangered Species Act.

  • September 12, 2025

    8th Circ. Pauses Challenges To Abandoned Climate Regs

    The Eighth Circuit on Friday said it would wait to rule on challenges to Biden-era climate disclosure rules that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has said it will no longer defend, giving the regulator time to decide what it wants to do with the rules.

  • September 12, 2025

    DOJ Says States Can't Reverse Grant Cuts In OMB Reg Fight

    The Trump administration urged a Massachusetts federal judge to throw out a suit brought by a score of states accusing it of misinterpreting an Office of Management and Budget regulation to slash thousands of grants, arguing they must seek relief in another forum.

  • September 12, 2025

    States, Tribes Say New Policy Warrants Ore. Dam Case Restart

    An Oregon federal judge granted a joint motion by two states, environmental groups and tribes to lift a five-year stay in a lawsuit over Columbia River Basin dams' hydropower practices and attempts to restore fisheries, following a Trump administration memo revoking a basin agreement.

  • September 12, 2025

    EPA To Spike Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Friday proposed repealing a 15-year-old program that requires power plants, fossil fuel and natural gas suppliers, and other facilities to report their greenhouse gas emissions, which the EPA said would save companies money.

  • September 12, 2025

    Liberty Wins Defense Reimbursement In Crane Damage Row

    A subcontractor's insurer must reimburse a Liberty Mutual unit for roughly $477,000 in defense costs stemming from settled litigation over property damage from an unsecured crane, a New York federal court ruled Friday, finding that a self-insured retention only applied with respect to the subcontractor.

  • September 12, 2025

    Chem Industry's Goals For Toxic Substance Law Face Hurdles

    The chemical industry is pushing to overhaul a federal toxic substances law to accelerate the approval of new products, but narrow party margins in Congress, compromises built into the law and environmental groups' opposition weigh heavily against them.

  • September 12, 2025

    Trump Admin Asks Justices To Shut Down Climate Torts

    The Trump administration has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to put an end to climate change lawsuits brought by state and local governments against fossil fuel companies, arguing that such suits are barred by both the U.S. Constitution and Clean Air Act.

  • September 12, 2025

    Buyers Seek Final OK In $1.5M Rust-Oleum Greenwashing Suit

    A class alleging that Rust-Oleum Corp. has been "greenwashing" its cleaning products with labels claiming they are "non-toxic" and "Earth Friendly" is asking a California federal court to grant final approval of a $1.5 million settlement to resolve the suit.

  • September 12, 2025

    Insurer Doubles Down On Bid To Undo $1.1M Roof Verdict

    A North Carolina federal court adopted the wrong causation standard in its instructions to a jury that awarded a church $1.1 million over its roof damage claim under what is known as an all-risk property policy, the church's insurer told the Fourth Circuit, urging the appeals court to set aside the verdict.

  • September 12, 2025

    Magnesium Producer's DIP Rollup Denied Amid Enviro Row

    A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Friday rejected US Magnesium's request to roll up some $3 million in existing debt after the state of Utah argued that doing so would improperly grant a lender liens on unencumbered assets, saying the evidence didn't support approving the rollup so early in the Chapter 11 case.

  • September 12, 2025

    Calif. Court Refuses To Block Climate Reporting Rules, Again

    A California federal court judge would not bar two new state climate disclosure regulations while a coalition of business groups takes its bid for an injunction up to the Ninth Circuit, saying his perspective hasn't shifted since the groups' last injunction request. 

  • September 12, 2025

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen former Master Chef presenter Gregg Wallace sue the BBC, Elon Musk's xAI take legal action against a staff engineer, and fashion mogul Kevin-Gerald Stanford file a fresh claim against Lion Capital-owned Klotho and EY amid a long-running All Saints share acquisition dispute.

  • September 11, 2025

    Energy Giants Largely Defeat Climate Change RICO Suit

    A Puerto Rico federal judge on Thursday mostly threw out, for good, racketeering and antitrust claims accusing a slew of energy industry companies of misrepresenting the climate dangers of fossil fuel products in causing a pair of hurricanes, though she declined to throw out some of the claims with prejudice.

  • September 11, 2025

    Ex-Nikola CEO Seeks To Undo Investor Class In Fraud Case

    Former Nikola CEO Trevor Milton on Thursday asked an Arizona federal judge to decertify at least part of a class of investors accusing him and the company of exaggerating the viability of Nikola's technology and its business prospects, arguing the lead investors didn't identify and contact class members during discovery.

  • September 11, 2025

    CFTC Withdraws Biden-Era Voluntary Carbon Credit Guidance

    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has withdrawn Biden-era guidelines that were intended to foster transparency and deter manipulation in the emerging market for voluntary carbon credits.

  • September 11, 2025

    Judge Won't Sink Calif. Offshore Oil Platform Suit

    A California federal judge has rejected Sable Offshore Corp.'s bid to toss a lawsuit accusing the federal government of failing to make the company update safety and pollution-control plans, saying the government's decision to not require an update doesn't sink green groups' allegations.

  • September 11, 2025

    Muscogee Can Continue Fight Over Ala. Burial Grounds

    A federal district judge has conditionally allowed the Muscogee Creek Nation to renew its challenge against an Alabama tribe in a dispute over a sacred burial site, saying it must first cure its sovereignty pleading problem before refiling the complaint.

  • September 11, 2025

    Trump Admin Should Release Climate Panel Docs, Judge Says

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Thursday encouraged the Trump administration to voluntarily turn over records from a recently disbanded panel that environmental groups say worked secretly with regulators to justify a proposed reversal of the government's longstanding position that greenhouse gases are a threat to public health.

  • September 11, 2025

    State Regulators Press FERC To Back $21.8B MISO Grid Plan

    Utility commissions in favor of a $21.8 billion transmission development plan told the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission this week that other state commissions challenging the plan are mischaracterizing their policy differences as tariff violations.

  • September 11, 2025

    IRS Forfeits Opposition In $37M Easement Dispute, Court Told

    Two partnerships seeking to reinstate their combined $37 million tax deductions for donating adjoining Georgia conservation easements told the Eleventh Circuit that the IRS has effectively forfeited its opposition to their claim that the U.S. Tax Court made valuation errors in reducing their tax breaks.

  • September 10, 2025

    Trump Admin's Push To Sunset Energy Regs Faces Hurdles

    Legal obligations and practical challenges may hamstring the Trump administration's efforts to wipe out as many energy regulations as possible, making the moves vulnerable to lawsuits while creating uncertainty for the energy industry.

  • September 10, 2025

    Consumers Defend Challenge To Nippon-US Steel Merger

    Consumers urged a California federal judge Wednesday not to dismiss their challenge to Nippon Steel's now-closed purchase of U.S. Steel Corp., arguing they've fixed an earlier lawsuit's shortcomings.

  • September 10, 2025

    Biz Groups Ask 4th Circ. To Revisit Ethylene Oxide Class Suit

    Business groups have urged the Fourth Circuit to reconsider a recent ruling that allowed a West Virginia woman's proposed class action to proceed against Union Carbide Corp. and Covestro LLC over ethylene oxide exposure, arguing that she doesn't have ground for her medical-monitoring claims.

Expert Analysis

  • How Cos. Can Mitigate Increasing Microplastics Liability Risk

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    Amid rising scrutiny in the U.S. and Europe of microplastics' impact on health and the growing threat of litigation against consumer product and food and beverage manufacturers, companies can limit liability through compliance with labeling laws, careful contract management and other practices, say attorneys at Rogers Joseph.

  • Strategizing For Renewable Energy Project Success In Texas

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    The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has long been a key market for renewable energy projects, but rising financial and regulatory uncertainty means that developers and investors must prepare for inflation and policy risks, secure robust insurance coverage, and leverage tax equity transferability to ensure success, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • A Cold War-Era History Lesson On Due Process

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    The landmark Harry Bridges case from the mid-20th century Red Scare offers important insights on why lawyers must be free of government reprisal, no matter who their client is, says Peter Afrasiabi at One LLP.

  • How Latin American Finance Markets May Shift Under Trump

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    Changes in the federal government are bringing profound implications for Latin American financial institutions and cross-border financing, including increased competition from U.S. banks, volatility in equity markets and stable green investor demand despite deregulation in the U.S., says David Contreiras Tyler at Womble Bond.

  • Series

    Improv Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Improv keeps me grounded and connected to what matters most, including in my legal career where it has helped me to maintain a balance between being analytical, precise and professional, and creative, authentic and open-minded, says Justine Gottshall at InfoLawGroup.

  • How BigLaw Executive Orders May Affect Smaller Firms

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    Because of the types of cases they take on, solo practitioners, small law firms and public interest attorneys may find themselves more dramatically affected by the collective impact of recent government action involving the legal industry than even the BigLaw firms named in the executive orders, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Opinion

    Lawsuits Shouldn't Be Shadow Assets For Foreign Capital

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    Third-party litigation financing amplifies inefficiencies from litigation and facilitates national exposure to foreign influence in the U.S. justice system, so full disclosure of financing arrangements should be required as a matter of institutional integrity, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

  • How To Accelerate Your Post-Attorney Career Transition

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    Professionals seeking to transition to nonattorney careers may encounter skepticism as nontraditional candidates, but there are opportunities for thought leadership and to leverage speaking and writing to accelerate a post-attorney career transition, say Janet Falk at Falk Communications and Evgeny Efremkin at Toronto Metropolitan University.

  • Key Takeaways From The 2025 Spring Antitrust Meeting

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    Leadership changes, shifting priorities and evolving enforcement tools dominated the conversation at the recent American Bar Association Spring Antitrust Meeting, as panelists explored competition policy under a second Trump administration, agency discretion under the 2023 merger guidelines and new frontiers in conduct enforcement, say attorneys at Freshfields.

  • What PFAS-Treated Clothing Tariff Bill Would Mean For Cos.

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    In keeping with a nationwide trend of greater restrictions on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, legislation pending in the U.S. House of Representatives would remove tariff advantages for PFAS-treated clothing — so businesses would be wise to proactively adapt their supply chains and review contracts to mitigate liability, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Be An Indispensable Associate

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    While law school teaches you to research, write and think critically, it often overlooks the professional skills you will need to make yourself an essential team player when transitioning from a summer to full-time associate, say attorneys at Stinson.

  • What 2nd Trump Admin Means For Ship Pollution Compliance

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    As the second Trump administration's civil and criminal enforcement policies take shape, the maritime industry must ensure it complies with both national and international obligations to prevent oil pollution from seagoing vessels — with preventive efforts and voluntary disclosures being some of the best options for mitigating risk, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Mass. AG Emerges As Key Player In Consumer Protection

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    Through enforcement actions and collaborations with other states — including joining a recent amicus brief decrying the defunding of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell has established herself as a thought leader for consumer protection and corporate accountability, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Series

    Birding Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Observing and documenting birds in their natural habitats fosters patience, sharpens observational skills and provides moments of pure wonder — qualities that foster personal growth and enrich my legal career, says Allison Raley at Arnall Golden.

  • What Cos. Should Know About U.S. Minerals Executive Order

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    President Donald Trump's new executive order aimed at boosting U.S. mineral production faces challenges including land use and environmental regulations, a lack of new funding, and the need for coordination among federal agencies, but it provides industry stakeholders with multiple opportunities to influence policy and funding, say advisers at Holland & Knight.

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