Environmental

Expert Analysis

• COVID IP Waiver Doesn't Resolve Vaccine Production Barriers

  

  Given the lack of know-how and other legal and technical hurdles associated with producing COVID-19 vaccines in developing countries, and the potential harm to U.S. industry, the Biden administration's backing a temporary waiver on intellectual property protections may be merely a gesture of goodwill, says William Bergmann at BakerHostetler.

• Judge's Rebuke Of Mass. AG Has Lessons For All Attorneys

  

  A Massachusetts federal judge’s recent rebuke of the state Attorney General’s Office for refusing to respond to discovery requests in Alliance for Automotive Innovation v. Healey highlights six important considerations for attorneys who want to avoid the dreaded benchslap, say Alison Eggers and Dallin Wilson at Seyfarth.  

• Current Pipelines And Regs Can Support Shift To Hydrogen

  

  The repurposing of America's fossil fuel infrastructure for renewable hydrogen has begun, and existing pipelines, regulations and statutes can provide the regulatory certainty needed to support investment in hydrogen power systems, say William Bolgiano and Matthew Field at Venable.

• Font Considerations To Give Your Legal Briefs An Edge

  

  Following the D.C. Circuit’s recent notice discouraging use of the font Garamond in legal briefs, Jason Steed at Kilpatrick looks at typeface requirements and preferences in appellate courts across the country, and how practitioners can score a few extra brief-writing points with typography.

• How Biden's First 100 Days Will Affect Gov't Contractors

  

  Joseph Berger and Thomas Mason at Thompson Hine examine the significant opportunities for government contractors arising from actions during the first 100 days of the Biden administration, which set the stage for unprecedented investment in national infrastructure, domestic manufacturing, research and development, clean energy, pandemic response and economic recovery.

• Make Profitability Management Part Of Your Law Firm Culture

  

  As the legal industry continues to change in the post-pandemic world, law firms should adapt to client demands by constantly measuring and managing the profitability of their services, says Joseph Altonji at LawVision.

• Indoor Air Pollution Fix Will Require New Laws, New Tech

  

  The COVID-19 pandemic, an aging population and changing workplace dynamics all foretell more exposure to indoor air pollutants, so a multidisciplinary policy approach combining technology, insurance, funding and regulation will be needed to improve indoor air quality and health, says Ann Al-Bahish at Haynes and Boone.

• The Biden Administration Is Sharpening The TSCA's Sword

  

  The Trump administration implemented the 2016 amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act in a way that critics felt benefited chemical companies, but the Biden administration can be expected to use the amendments to broaden risk reviews and impose new requirements on the regulated community, say attorneys at Kilpatrick.

• Rethinking Investment Treaties As Latin America Goes Green

  

  As Latin America pivots toward renewable energy, governments should reshape bilateral investment treaties to allow incentives for new technologies and improve dispute settlement mechanisms, while also providing both new and established energy companies with certainty and fair treatment, say attorneys at GST.

• 4 Trends In Discoverability Of Litigation Funding Documents

  

  Recent rulings shed light on how courts and international arbitration tribunals decide if litigation funding materials are discoverable and reaffirm best practices that attorneys should follow when communicating with funders, say Justin Maleson at Longford Capital and Michele Slachetka and Christian Plummer at Jenner & Block.

• Opinion

  Keep Junk Science Away From Juries

  

  Well-grounded scientific testimony in judicial proceedings has become more essential than ever, especially with large verdicts at stake in cases concerning hot-button issues like talc and climate change, so judges must act as gatekeepers to exclude unsound science from jury trials, says Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation.

• Biden Infrastructure Plan Will Be Challenging To Implement

  

  President Joe Biden's $2 trillion American Jobs Plan proposes incentives for environmental remediation of legacy sites, and creation of more resilient and greener energy infrastructure — but fully implementing it would take many years, and require close coordination between the White House, Congress and federal agencies, says Robert Middleton at Schiff Hardin.

• 7 Lessons For Young Lawyers Starting Their Careers

  

  This year's law graduates and other young attorneys must recognize that the practice of law tests and rewards different skills and characteristics than law school, and that what makes a lawyer valuable changes over time, says Vernon Winters, retired partner at Sidley.

• Opinion

  Biden Admin.'s Climate Strategy Should Include Insurance Innovations

  

  To successfully meet the Biden administration's climate-related goals, the federal government must fill gaps in state regulation of environmental insurance, and help create an insurance framework that incentivizes and facilitates carbon impact reduction in four key areas, say Michael Hill and Paul Tetenbaum at Blue Dot Climate Insurance.

• What NYC Climate Case Dismissal Means For Baltimore Suit

  

  The Second Circuit's recent thumbs-down to New York City's climate change lawsuit puts even more pressure on the U.S. Supreme Court to address federal preemption in climate litigation when it decides BP v. Baltimore this year, says Scott Press at Goldberg Segalla.