Environmental

  • August 26, 2025

    Feds Look To Dismiss Calif. Tribe's $700M Casino Dispute

    The U.S. Department of the Interior, with the backing of two tribes and the California Gaming Association, is looking to dismiss a lawsuit over its decision to temporarily nix eligibility for a proposed $700 million casino and hotel project, arguing it doesn't constitute a final agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act.

  • August 26, 2025

    Wash. Cities Settle Yacht Club's Clean Water Act Suit

    Two Washington cities have tentatively settled a yacht club's federal lawsuit claiming the municipalities muddied the waters of its marina by failing to maintain critical stormwater infrastructure and allowing the discharge of silt-laden runoff.

  • August 25, 2025

    Fla. ICE Official Warns Detention Center Closure Risks Safety

    The field office director for U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement in Miami urged a Florida federal court to keep a temporary detention center in the Everglades in operation, saying in a motion to pause an injunction that closing the facility will endanger the community. 

  • August 25, 2025

    Detroit Coke Plant Found Liable For Clean Air Act Violations

    A federal judge on Monday ruled a Detroit facility that produces coke for steelmaking violated the Clean Air Act with increased air pollution, teeing up a trial to determine if parent company DTE Energy shares responsibility.

  • August 25, 2025

    Texas Wants To Back Trump In Calif. Vehicle Waiver Fight

    Texas has told a federal court that California shouldn't be allowed to adopt vehicle emissions standards that are stricter than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's because other states essentially have to go along with them even if they disagree.

  • August 25, 2025

    Feds, Wind Farm Backers Duel For Wins In Permitting Fight

    As the Trump administration moves to halt work on multiple offshore wind projects, the government and wind farm backers have blasted each other's bids for quick wins in litigation challenging the stoppage of all federal reviews of wind projects.

  • August 25, 2025

    Trade Court Remands Belgian Citric Acid Exporter Review

    The U.S. Court of International Trade remanded the U.S. Department of Commerce's antidumping duty investigation of citric acid imports from a Belgium exporter after finding that the government failed to properly account for costs associated with production.

  • August 25, 2025

    Ex-TSA Attorney Among 3 New Lawyers At Kaplan Kirsch

    A former Transportation Security Administration attorney is among three lawyers who recently joined Kaplan Kirsch LLP, a Denver-based law firm that specializes in representing state, local and tribal government agencies on projects such as airport expansions and new rail lines.

  • August 25, 2025

    3 Firms Advise On Crescent's $3.1B Vital Energy Acquisition

    Crescent Energy Co. will acquire Vital Energy Inc. in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.1 billion, including Vital's net debt, the companies said Monday, with three law firms advising on the transaction.

  • August 25, 2025

    Unions Ask Judge To Block DOD, EPA From Ending Contracts

    A D.C. federal judge should stop the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and four other agencies from canceling their union contracts, a group of unions said, asking him to block the agencies from complying with an executive order that let them terminate these contracts.

  • August 25, 2025

    Judge Pauses CWA Suit Over Chemours' Ohio River Pollution

    A West Virginia federal judge put a Clean Water Act citizen suit nearing trial on hold as Chemours appeals a preliminary injunction ruling holding that an environmental group can challenge its allegedly excessive discharges of a "forever chemical" into the Ohio River.

  • August 22, 2025

    3rd Circ. Upholds Shipbuilder's Ch. 11 Reopening

    A split Third Circuit panel on Friday upheld, 2-1, a New Jersey bankruptcy judge's discretion in reopening Congoleum Corp.'s 2003 Chapter 11 case and barring Occidental Chemical from pursuing Congoleum affiliate Bath Iron Works to recover pollution liability expenses.

  • August 22, 2025

    Split 9th Circ. Halts Land Swap With Idaho Tribes' Backing

    A split Ninth Circuit panel on Friday upheld a lower court's decision to invalidate an Interior Department land transfer in Idaho for the expansion of a phosphogypsum plant, saying that a 1900 federal law limits the disposal of treaty-ceded lands.

  • August 22, 2025

    Green Groups Lodge 5th Circ. Challenge Over La. LNG Permits

    Environmentalists have asked the Fifth Circuit to cancel air permits issued by Louisiana environmental regulators for a liquefied natural gas export terminal, saying the permits were unlawfully issued and will increase pollution for nearby communities.

  • August 22, 2025

    Rubin And Rudman Adds Environmental Land Use Law Expert

    Rubin and Rudman LLP has hired a partner to the firm's environmental, land use and zoning practice group whose transactional and regulatory compliance focus will complement the firm's bench of environmental land use law and real estate law experts and litigators.

  • August 22, 2025

    Pillsbury Hires Renewable Energy Pro From Holland & Knight

    The former co-head of Holland & Knight LLP's renewable energy team has joined Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP as a partner in New York.

  • August 22, 2025

    DC Circ. Rejects NM Ranchers' Bird Protection Challenge

    The D.C. Circuit on Friday rejected New Mexico ranchers' challenge to the federal government's decision to preserve Endangered Species Act protections for a small, migratory songbird.

  • August 22, 2025

    IRS Guidance Sparks Mixed Reaction For Solar, Wind Projects

    The IRS recently narrowed the way large solar and wind energy development projects can set their construction start dates to qualify for certain tax credits, a change offering relief for some developers but new hurdles for others depending on the stage, type and size of the project.

  • August 22, 2025

    BBK Taps Gov't Affairs Director From Interior Leadership

    Best Best & Krieger LLP has hired a U.S. Department of the Interior leader who helped advance drought resilience plans and advise the agency's secretary on water and science policy as the new director of its government affairs group, the firm announced.

  • August 22, 2025

    Fla. Appeals Order To Wind Down Detention Center Operations

    A Florida official filed notice late Thursday that the state will appeal a federal judge's ruling ordering the government to begin winding down operations at the Everglades immigration detention center after finding the plaintiffs challenging it are likely to prevail on their environmental claims.

  • August 21, 2025

    Fla. Judge Orders Wind Down Of Everglades Detention Center

    A Florida federal judge Thursday ordered the government to stop bringing new detainees to the Everglades immigration detention center dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz" and to begin winding down operations after finding the plaintiffs challenging the center are likely to prevail on their environmental claims.

  • August 21, 2025

    Nikola SPAC, Related Settlements Reach $33.75M In Del.

    A multi-court string of settlements has produced a $33.75 million proposed payout for stockholders who alleged in direct and derivative state and federal actions that they were misled in deals that took electric vehicle maker Nikola Corp. public.

  • August 21, 2025

    'Sustainable' Fintech Leader Cops To $248M Investor Fraud

    The co-founder of bankrupt financial services company Aspiration Partners Inc. agreed on Thursday to plead guilty to defrauding investors and lenders.

  • August 21, 2025

    Biz Groups Appeal Calif. Climate Reporting Ruling To 9th Circ.

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups have appealed a court order rejecting their bid to block new California state regulations requiring large companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risks that they claim violate their First Amendment rights.

  • August 21, 2025

    Consumer Advocates Blast FERC Inaction On Power Auction

    Consumer advocates and municipal utilities have told the D.C. Circuit that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission can't use a Third Circuit ruling to claim it is powerless to prevent the rerunning of a flawed electricity capacity auction that overcharged consumers by $183 million.

Expert Analysis

  • Trump Air Emissions Carveouts Cloud The Regulatory Picture

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    President Donald Trump's new proclamations temporarily exempting key U.S. industries from air toxics standards, issued under a narrow, rarely-used provision of the Clean Air Act, will likely lead to legal challenges and tighter standards in some states, contributing to further regulatory uncertainty, say attorneys at GableGotwals.

  • How Property Insurers Serve As Climate Change Harbingers

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    Thomas Dawson at McDermott discusses the role that U.S. property insurers may play in identifying and assessing climate risk, as well as in financing climate change adaptation projects, in light of global warming and shifting geopolitical realities.

  • Series

    Playing Baseball Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing baseball in college, and now Wiffle ball in a local league, has taught me that teamwork, mental endurance and emotional intelligence are not only important to success in the sport, but also to success as a trial attorney, says Kevan Dorsey at Swift Currie.

  • Managing Risks As State AGs Seek To Fill Enforcement Gap

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    Given an unprecedented surge in state attorney general activity resulting from significant shifts in federal enforcement priorities, companies must consider tailored strategies for navigating the ever-evolving risk landscape, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • A Deep Dive Into 14 Nixed Gensler-Era SEC Rule Proposals

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last month formally withdrew 14 notices of proposed rulemaking, including several significant and widely criticized proposals that had been issued under former Chair Gary Gensler's leadership, signaling a clear and definitive shift away from the previous administration, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Skillful Persuasion

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    In many ways, law school teaches us how to argue, but when the ultimate goal is to get your client what they want, being persuasive through preparation and humility is the more likely key to success, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

  • A Look At Trump 2.0 Antitrust Enforcement So Far

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    The first six months of President Donald Trump's second administration were marked by aggressive antitrust enforcement tempered by traditional structural remedies for mergers, but other unprecedented actions, like the firing of Federal Trade Commission Democrats, will likely stoke heated discussion ahead, says Richard Dagen at Axinn.

  • Litigation Inspiration: How To Respond After A Loss

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    Every litigator loses a case now and then, and the sting of that loss can become a medicine that strengthens or a poison that corrodes, depending on how the attorney responds, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Tips For Cos. From California Climate Reporting FAQ

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    New guidance from the California Air Resources Board on how businesses must implement the state's sweeping climate reporting requirements should help companies assess their exposure, understand their disclosure obligations and begin documenting good-faith compliance efforts, says Thierry Montoya at Frost Brown.

  • What Calif. Insurance Ruling Means For Smoke Damage Limits

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    As California continues to grapple with an increasing number of wildfire claims, a state court's recent Aliff v. California FAIR Plan decision serves as a clear directive to insurers that policy language that narrows the scope of fire coverage below the California Insurance Code's minimum standards is impermissible, say attorneys at Wood Smith.

  • The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

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    The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Series

    Playing Mah-Jongg Makes Me A Better Mediator

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    Mah-jongg rewards patience, pattern recognition, adaptability and keen observation, all skills that are invaluable to my role as a mediator, and to all mediating parties, says Marina Corodemus.

  • Calif. Air Waivers Fight Fuels Automakers', States' Uncertainty

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    The unprecedented attempt by Congress and the Trump administration to kill the Clean Air Act waivers supporting California's vehicle emissions standards will eventually end up in the U.S. Supreme Court — but meanwhile, vehicle manufacturers, and states following California's standards, are left in limbo, says John Watson at Spencer Fane.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Navigating Client Trauma

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    Law schools don't train students to handle repeated exposure to clients' traumatic experiences, but for litigators practicing in areas like civil rights and personal injury, success depends on the ability to view cases clinically and to recognize when you may need to seek help, says Katie Bennett at Robins Kaplan.

  • Lawsuit, Exec Orders Should Boost Small Modular Reactors

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    A lawsuit in Texas federal court and a set of new executive orders from the White House may finally push the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to allow for accelerated deployment of small modular reactors — a technology that could change the country's energy future, says Aleksey Shtivelman at Shutts & Bowen.

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