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Environmental
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August 20, 2025
DC Circ. Upholds Crow Tribe Water Rights Suit Dismissal
A D.C. Circuit Court panel won't overturn a decision dismissing a suit that looked to nullify a Montana water rights settlement, saying a 2010 law ratifying the agreement doesn't specify which tribal member can greenlight a deadline extension for publication of the agreement's statement of findings.
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August 20, 2025
Ark. Woman Gets Probation After Looting Native Burial Site
An Arkansas woman was sentenced to four years of probation after the U.S. Department of Justice said she excavated a Native American archeological site in the Ozark Mountains and took human remains and Indigenous artifacts.
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August 20, 2025
2nd Circ. Says Section 230 Can't Block EPA Defeat Device Suit
The Second Circuit on Wednesday said makers of software that allegedly enables vehicles to bypass pollution controls can't use a Communications Decency Act provision intended to protect companies from third-party use of their products to dodge a federal lawsuit.
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August 20, 2025
Chemours Says Injunction Appeal Warrants Stay Of CWA Suit
Chemours urged a federal judge to pause a Clean Water Act suit while it appeals a preliminary injunction ordering it to stop its Washington Works plant from discharging excessive amounts of a "forever chemical" into the Ohio River.
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August 20, 2025
5th Circ. Won't Stick BP, Chevron With $11M Well Cleanup Bill
A Fifth Circuit panel has affirmed a lower court decision dismissing a surety company's lawsuit claiming BP and Chevron need to pony up $11 million to pay for offshore decommissioning costs, saying the insurer wasn't entitled to be reimbursed.
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August 19, 2025
Sotera Urges 6th Circ. To Toss Investors' Toxic Gas Suit
Sotera Health Co. urged the Sixth Circuit to affirm the dismissal of a lawsuit accusing it of concealing the carcinogenic nature of a gas used at its sterilization plants, saying "defending yourself in litigation is not securities fraud."
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August 19, 2025
Nonprofits, Union Fight Withholding Of AmeriCorps Funds
A group of nonprofits and a union added claims to their suit in Maryland federal court aiming to stop the Trump administration from dismantling AmeriCorps, accusing the Office of Management and Budget of unlawfully withholding millions of dollars appropriated by Congress for grant programs.
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August 19, 2025
Trump Energy Orders Suit Must Be Sustained, Youths Say
Youths alleging President Donald Trump's energy policy directives harm their future by exacerbating climate change have urged a federal judge to keep their lawsuit alive, saying it "defies reason, science" for the government to claim the actions don't move the climate needle.
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August 19, 2025
2nd Circ.: Judge Erred In Remanding Vermont-3M PFAS Row
The Second Circuit on Tuesday agreed with 3M Co. that a federal judge wrongly sent Vermont's lawsuit against the company over "forever chemicals" contamination back to state court, finding 3M moved the case to federal court in time.
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August 19, 2025
Ute Tribe Says 1880 Act Proves Land Ownership Claim
The Ute Indian Tribe asked the D.C. Circuit on Tuesday to reverse a lower court decision refusing to hand over ownership of federally managed land, saying a law dating back to 1880 required the U.S. executive branch to "set apart" lands for a new reservation.
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August 19, 2025
Chinese Co. Looks To Enforce $217M Salmon Farming Award
Chinese agribusiness Joyvio Group Co. Ltd. is asking a Florida federal court to enforce a $217 million arbitral award it won following its nearly $1 billion purchase of a Chilean salmon farming business, after it emerged that the previous owners had deliberately inflated production capacity to drive up the price.
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August 19, 2025
Sunnova's $118M Sale Can Proceed Despite Bank's Protest
A Texas bankruptcy judge Tuesday declined to undo a $118 million sale of almost all the assets of solar panel business Sunnova Energy International Inc., rejecting a St. Louis-area bank's argument that the debtor failed to disclose that nondebtor assets would be part of the transaction.
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August 19, 2025
Feds Say They'll Rescind Biden-Era Species Protections
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has said it will rescind a Biden-era Endangered Species Act rule that automatically places the strongest protections on all plants and animals covered by law.
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August 19, 2025
DOJ Environmental Atty Joins McGuireWoods In DC
A former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer who helped the Biden administration fight for the removal of a 1,000-foot buoy barrier in the Rio Grande and defended EPA guidance on forever chemicals has joined McGuireWoods' office in Washington, D.C.
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August 19, 2025
9th Circuit Pauses Oak Flat Land Transfer Pending Appeals
A Ninth Circuit panel has hit pause on the federal government's scheduled transfer of a centuries-old Indigenous worship site within Arizona's Tonto National Forest to a copper mining company while challenges to a multibillion-dollar proposed project play out in the appellate court.
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August 19, 2025
Black Hills, NorthWestern Merge In $15.4B All-Stock Deal
Utility company Black Hills Corp., advised by Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, on Tuesday announced plans to merge with Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP-advised energy and infrastructure company NorthWestern Energy Group Inc. in an all-stock deal with a combined enterprise value of $15.4 billion.
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August 18, 2025
4th Circ. Revives Ethylene Oxide Suit Against Union Carbide
A split Fourth Circuit on Monday revived a West Virginia woman's lawsuit alleging that a Union Carbide Corp.- and Covestro LLC-owned plant exposed nearby residents to ethylene oxide, finding that a lower court erred in siding with the companies.
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August 18, 2025
Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court
Executives and board members of Cencora Corp. tentatively settled a stockholder derivative suit for $111.25 million, VectoIQ board members reached a $6.3 million deal on stockholder claims over electric carmaker Nikola's prospects, and class attorneys who secured a $50 million derivative suit settlement saw their proposed 25% attorney fee cut by almost half. Here's the latest from the Delaware Chancery Court.
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August 18, 2025
Judge Won't Pause Pipeline Suit For Top Court Review
A Michigan judge on Monday said the state attorney general's legal fight over an Enbridge Energy LP pipeline in the Great Lakes can continue, even while the U.S. Supreme Court mulls whether the case belongs in state or federal court.
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August 18, 2025
Tribe, Groups Appeal Oak Flat Land Exchange To 9th Circ.
The San Carlos Apache Tribe and environmental groups have filed a Ninth Circuit appeal looking to overturn an Arizona federal court judge's decision that denied their bid to block the transfer of 2,500 acres to a copper mining company that they say will crater an ancient Indigenous worship site.
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August 18, 2025
GrafTech Investors' Plant Contamination Suit Gets Tossed
An Ohio federal judge threw out a shareholder lawsuit against GrafTech International Ltd. on Monday, ruling that allegations the company hid environmental contamination problems at a Mexican plant amounted to "fraud by hindsight."
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August 18, 2025
$28M ND Pipeline Protest Case Paused Amid Settlement Talks
A federal district court and the Eighth Circuit have paused a $28 million dispute between North Dakota and the United States over failure to control Dakota Access Pipeline protesters after the parties said they were negotiating to settle the case.
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August 18, 2025
Judge Rejects Energy Co.'s Bid To Toss $200M Hemp Suit
AES Clean Energy Development LLC's argument that it was not the party responsible for breaking irrigation lines leading to an alleged $200 million in damages to two hemp growers is a problem to still resolve in a lawsuit against the company, a Colorado federal judge found in denying a motion to dismiss on Monday.
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August 18, 2025
Vt. Says It Has The Authority To Enact Climate Superfund Law
Vermont has urged a federal judge to dismiss lawsuits challenging its recently enacted climate change Superfund law, saying it's a valid exercise of the state's authority to raise revenue and protect its citizens against environmental harms.
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August 18, 2025
AmeriCorps Restores $400M In Slashed Grants, Judge Told
AmeriCorps told a Maryland federal judge Monday that the agency restored around $400 million in funding to nonprofits canceled under the Trump administration in April, saying the government doesn't plan to ax grants before they end.
Expert Analysis
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Series
Competing In Modern Pentathlon Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Opening myself up to new experiences through competing in modern Olympic pentathlon has shrunk the appearance of my daily work annoyances and helps me improve my patience, manage crises better and remember that acquiring new skills requires working through your early mistakes, says attorney Mary Zoldak.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Teaching Yourself Legal Tech
New graduates often enter practice unfamiliar with even basic professional software, but budding lawyers can use on-the-job opportunities to both catch up on technological skills and explore the advanced legal and artificial intelligence tools that will open doors, says Alyssa Sones at Sheppard Mullin.
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State Farm Rate Hike Portends Intensifying Insurance Crisis
The California Department of Insurance's unprecedented emergency approval of a 17% rate increase for State Farm General Insurance, the first interim rate relief granted before completing full actuarial justification, represents a regulatory watershed and establishes precedent that could fundamentally reshape insurers' response to climate-driven market instability, says Daniel Veroff at Merlin Law Group.
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Texas Targets Del. Primacy With Trio Of New Corporate Laws
Delaware has long positioned itself as the leader in attracting business formation, but a flurry of new legislation in Texas aimed at attracting businesses to the Lone Star State is aggressively trying to change that, says Andrew Oringer at the Wagner Law Group.
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How AI May Reshape The Future Of Adjudication
As discussed at a recent panel at Texas A&M, artificial intelligence will not erase the human element of adjudication in the next 10 to 20 years, but it will drive efficiencies that spur private arbiters to experiment, lead public courts to evolve and force attorneys to adapt, says Christopher Seck at Squire Patton.
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When Legal Advocacy Crosses The Line Into Incivility
As judges issue sanctions for courtroom incivility, and state bars advance formal discipline rules, trial lawyers must understand that the difference between zealous advocacy and unprofessionalism is not just a matter of tone; it's a marker of skill, credibility and potentially disciplinary exposure, says Nate Sabri at Perkins Coie.
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3 Corporate Deposition Prep Tips To Counter 'Reptile' Tactics
With plaintiffs counsel’s rising use of reptile strategies that seek to activate jurors' survival instincts, corporate deponents face an increased risk of being lulled into providing testimony that undercuts a key defense or sets up the plaintiff's case strategy at trial, making it important to consider factors like cross-examination and timing, say attorneys at Dentons.
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Series
Volunteering At Schools Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Speaking to elementary school students about the importance of college and other opportunities after high school — especially students who may not see those paths reflected in their daily lives — not only taught me the importance of giving back, but also helped to sharpen several skills essential to a successful legal practice, says Guillermo Escobedo at Constangy.
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DOE Grant Recipients Facing Termination Have Legal Options
Federal grant recipients whose awards have recently been rescinded by the U.S. Deparment of Energy have options for successfully challenging those terminations through litigation, say attorneys at Bracewell.
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Attacks On Judicial Independence Tend To Manifest In 3 Ways
Attacks on judicial independence now run the gamut from gross (bald-faced interference) to systemic (structural changes) to insidious (efforts to undermine public trust), so lawyers, judges and the public must recognize the fateful moment in which we live and defend the rule of law every day, says Jim Moliterno at Washington and Lee University.
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Statistics Tools Chart A Path For AI Use In Expert Testimony
To avoid the fate of numerous expert witnesses whose testimony was recently deemed inadmissible by courts, experts relying on artificial intelligence and machine learning should learn from statistical tools’ road to judicial acceptance, say directors at Secretariat.
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A Look At Texas Corp. Law Changes Aimed At Dethroning Del.
Seeking to displace Delaware as the preferred locale for incorporation, Texas recently significantly amended its business code, including changes like codifying the business judgment rule, restricting books and records demands, and giving greater protections for officers and directors in interested transactions, say attorneys at Fenwick.
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Justices Hand Agencies Broad Discretion In NEPA Review
By limiting the required scope of reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act, the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County could weaken the review process under NEPA, while also raising questions regarding the degree of deference afforded to agencies, say attorneys at Foley Hoag.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Appreciating Civil Procedure
If you’re like me, law school’s often complex and theoretical approach to teaching civil procedure may have contributed to an early struggle with the topic, but when seen from a practical perspective, new lawyers may find they enjoy mastering these rules, says Chloe Villagomez at Foster Garvey.
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Calif. Bar Exam Fiasco Shows Why Attys Must Disclose AI Use
The recent revelation that a handful of questions from the controversial California bar exam administered in February were drafted using generative artificial intelligence demonstrates the continued importance of disclosure for attorneys who use AI tools, say attorneys at Troutman.