A South Carolina federal judge Wednesday told the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency it must comply with the court's prior order and continue administering a $2.8 billion environmental and climate justice grant funding program that was authorized by Congress in 2022.
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THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

EPA 'Defying' Order Reviving $2.8B Grant Program, Judge Says

By Bonnie Eslinger

A South Carolina federal judge Wednesday told the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency it must comply with the court's prior order and continue administering a $2.8 billion environmental and climate justice grant funding program that was authorized by Congress in 2022.

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LG Energy Says Bosch, Others Infringe Battery Patents

By Gina Kim

LG Energy accused Robert Bosch GmbH, a Chinese battery manufacturer and several others of ripping off its secondary cylindrical battery patented technology that can be used to charge consumer electronics, electric vehicles and power tools, according to a patent infringement action filed in Texas federal court Tuesday.

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Texas Judge OKs Deal Cutting Lizard's Endangered Listing

By Tom Lotshaw

A Texas federal judge approved a settlement in which the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agreed to scrap a Biden-era rule Texas challenged that listed the dunes sagebrush lizard as endangered, sparking an outcry from the group that sought the listing.

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States Seek Win Over Trump Admin In DEI Contracts Dispute

By Madeline Lyskawa

Nineteen states and the District of Columbia are urging a Maryland federal judge to vacate federal agencies' implementation of President Donald Trump's executive order requiring government contractors to agree that they won't engage in "racially discriminatory" diversity, equity and inclusion activities.

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OIL AND GAS

Judge Blocks Exxon's Due Process Claims In Records Suit

By Julie Manganis

A Massachusetts state court judge on Wednesday rejected Exxon Mobil's bid to revive constitutional claims in what he called an already "over-litigated" public records lawsuit against state environmental regulators.

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Exxon Convinces 5th Circ. To Scrap OSHA Mental Illness Reg

By Patrick Hoff

The Fifth Circuit nixed an Occupational Safety and Health Administration rule requiring employers to keep track of employees' work-related mental illnesses, concluding that Congress didn't give the agency authority to regulate mental health in the workplace.

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Maduro Gets 2027 Trial Date, Plans To Challenge Indictment

By Pete Brush

A Manhattan federal judge on Wednesday scheduled a 2027 trial date for deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, after hearing that Maduro plans in the coming weeks to claim immunity as a sovereign leader from charges of narco-terrorism.

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UTILITIES AND POWER

Brief

Colo. Energy Co., Meter Maker Settle $750K Equipment Suit

By Zach Dupont

A Colorado energy and gas company reached a settlement with the Canadian company it accused in state court of selling it nearly $750,000 worth of faulty multiphase flow meters and ignoring requests for a refund, according to a notice of settlement. 

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RENEWABLES

Canadian Solar Sued Over NC Plant's Development Hiccups

By Keith Goldberg

Solar developer Canadian Solar Inc. has been sued by a buyer of one of its projects who claims the company reneged on a pledge to secure a project site approval and stuck it with millions of dollars in remediation costs.

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Ex-Pink Energy CEO Offers $575K To Exit Solar Fraud Case

By Susan Smiley

Plaintiffs in a fraud class action against a now-defunct solar energy company asked a Michigan federal judge on Wednesday to approve a settlement between the class and just one of the 10 defendants accused of ripping off home solar customers.

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES

EV Battery Co. Misled Investors On Expansion, Suit Says

By Sydney Price

Electric vehicle-battery manufacturer Microvast Holdings Inc. has been accused of misleading investors about production delays at its China facility and concealing the reasons why several of its chief financial officers departed the company over a three-year period.

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MINING

Latham, Hughes Hubbard Lead Nth Cycle's $585M SPAC Deal

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Critical mineral refiner Nth Cycle Inc., led by Latham & Watkins LLP, on Wednesday revealed plans to go public by merging with Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP-led special purpose acquisition company Kensington Capital Acquisition Corp. VI in a $585 million deal.

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PEOPLE

Thompson Hine Opens Energy Practice With 4-Atty Team

By Daniel Moritz-Rabson

Thompson Hine LLP on Wednesday announced the opening of an energy practice with a four-lawyer team split between the East and West coasts.

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McGuireWoods Adds Kirkland Energy Finance Pro In Houston

By Lynn LaRowe

McGuireWoods LLP has added depth to its energy sector finance offerings with a Houston-based partner who came aboard from Kirkland & Ellis LLP.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

Justices' Review Of Atty Fees Could Reshape Pipeline Takings

With the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to review Hoffmann v. WBI Energy Transmission, property owners' right to recover attorney fees for appropriations under the Natural Gas Act is at stake, potentially leading to a choice between a depressed land valuation or court costs that could exceed any rewards, says attorney Sophia Holley.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

500-Member NYC Public Defender Union Ends Strike

By Andrea Keckley

The first and so far only New York City public defender union to go on strike this year announced on Wednesday that its approximately 500 members are returning to work after reaching a tentative agreement with their managers.

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ABA Rips DOJ's 'Absurd' Firm Subpoenas In Documents Fight

By Emily Sawicki

The American Bar Association has blasted as "absurd" the government's move to subpoena law firms as an attempt to avoid a documents request from the organization amid allegations the Trump administration worked to intimidate law firms into conforming with his policy goals through executive orders last year.

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Jack Smith's Lawyers Say Criminal Referral Twists Testimony

By Courtney Bublé

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith's legal team has said the criminal referral a U.S. congress member sent the Department of Justice to investigate Smith is based on a "spurious claim."

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Does Your Pay Measure Up? Take The Law360 Pulse Survey

How do in-house salaries vary across industries, roles, and organizational revenue? What compensation tools are companies using to lure top talent? Help Law360 Pulse answer these questions and more in this year's In-House Compensation Survey.

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Simpson Thacher Warned Co. About Deal Terms, Jury Told

By Cara Salvatore

A retired Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP partner who handled the fundraising vehicle alleged to have destroyed Patriot National Inc. told a Florida jury Thursday that he flagged deal terms that later became detrimental to the insurance services company.

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Senate Confirms 2 Judges, Advances Ohio And Colo. Picks

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate on Thursday voted 48-47 to confirm Judge Daniel Traynor of the District of North Dakota to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit and 49-44 to confirm Antonio M. Pozos, a partner at Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, as a judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

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Harvard Law School Illegally Froze Pay, ULP Claims

By Katherine Smith

Harvard Law School violated federal labor law by failing to give clinical instructors annual raises and bonuses — which they had received previously — after they unionized with a United Auto Workers affiliate, the instructors alleged in an unfair labor practice charge Thursday.

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COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

American Bar Association

Amicus

Brooklyn Defender Services

Canadian Solar Inc.

Center for Biological Diversity Inc.

Center for Family Representation Inc.

Defenders of Wildlife

Earth Island Institute Inc.

Exxon Mobil Corp.

Instagram Inc.

Institute for Justice

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

LG Energy Solution Ltd.

LinkedIn Corp.

MDU Resources Group Inc.

National Conference of State Legislatures

Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem

Patriot National Inc.

Power Home Solar LLC

Public Rights Project

Recurrent Energy Inc.

Robert Bosch GmbH

Saudi Arabian Oil Co.

Southern Environmental Law Center

The Bronx Defenders

Trivest Partners LP

UBS Group AG

UCLA School of Law

United Auto Workers

WBI Energy Transmission Inc.

LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

A&O Shearman

Advisors LLC

Baker & Hostetler

Braaten Law Firm

Burns Charest

Conner Gwyn

Conrad & Scherer

Coulson PC

Covington & Burling

Dacus Law Firm

DarrowEverett

Davis Graham

Dentons

Faegre Drinker

Fink Bressack

Gibson Dunn

Hirschler

Honigman LLP

Hughes Hubbard

Kelley Drye

Kirkland & Ellis

Latham & Watkins

Mayer Brown

McGuireWoods

Mintz Levin

Parker & Sanchez

Pillsbury Winthrop

Pomerantz LLP

Quinn Emanuel

Segal Roitman

Sidley Austin

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett

Stearns Weaver

Susman Godfrey

Thompson Hine

Turner Boyd

White & Case

Williams & Connolly

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Executive Office of the President

Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council

Fish and Wildlife Service

International Court of Justice

Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection

National Labor Relations Board

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission

Texas Attorney General's Office

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Carolina

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

U.S. Department of Agriculture

U.S. Department of Defense

U.S. Department of Energy

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Labor

U.S. Department of Transportation

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. District & Bankruptcy Courts of Southern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

U.S. Senate

U.S. Supreme Court

U.S. Trade and Development Agency

United States District Court for the District of Colorado

United States District Court for the District of North Dakota