Environmental groups are urging the Ninth Circuit to review Trump administration's recent decision approving operations of two coastal California oil pipeline segments, including one that was shut down for years following a 2015 oil spill, saying on Tuesday that the new permit waives key safety requirements.
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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

Feds' Latest Permit For Calif. Pipeline Challenged At 9th Circ.

By Rachel Riley

Environmental groups are urging the Ninth Circuit to review Trump administration's recent decision approving operations of two coastal California oil pipeline segments, including one that was shut down for years following a 2015 oil spill, saying on Tuesday that the new permit waives key safety requirements.

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Oil Cos. Escape Mich. Climate Change Antitrust Suit

By Keith Goldberg

A federal judge on Tuesday nixed a lawsuit from Michigan accusing global oil and gas giants of conspiring for decades to delay the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy, ruling the allegations do not amount to valid antitrust claims.

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Blue States Expand Fight Over Trump Offshore Wind Buyouts

By Keith Goldberg

Democratic-led states on Tuesday stepped up their fight against the Trump administration's buyouts of U.S. offshore wind leases, filing a trio of lawsuits that seek to undo payments to developers for abandoning projects on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

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NJ Fines Data Center $1M For 62 Unpermitted Generators

By Hailey Konnath

New Jersey on Tuesday fined a data center more than $1 million after discovering dozens of large natural gas-powered generators operating without permits, the largest enforcement action ever taken against a data center in the Garden State, according to an announcement.

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REGIONAL POWERHOUSES

Pennsylvania Powerhouse: Cozen O'Connor

By P.J. D'Annunzio

Pennsylvania-based Cozen O'Connor assisted clients in blockbuster transactions and key courtroom wins over the past year, representing Talen Energy in a deal to supply power to Amazon's $20 billion data center in the Keystone State and securing a ruling for utility companies that keeps dispute resolution power in the hands of the state Public Utility Commission.

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POLICY & REGULATION

EU, Philippines Reach Preliminary Free Trade Deal

By Jack McLoone

The European Union and the Philippines have reached a "substantial agreement" on a free trade deal that would mutually reduce or remove tariffs on 97% of trade between them, the bloc announced Tuesday.

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Commerce On The Lookout For Polysilicon Stockpiling

By Jack McLoone

The U.S. Department of Commerce is looking to prevent the stockpiling of imported polysilicon and derivative products ahead of tariffs and price floors that will come into effect in December, it said in new rules Tuesday.

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OIL AND GAS

Zurich Says It Had No Duty To Keep $19M Award Secret

By Hope Patti

A Zurich unit urged a Missouri federal court to toss a pipeline construction company's counterclaims that the insurer improperly disclosed information about a $19 million interim arbitral award against the company when the insurer filed a suit seeking to avoid coverage, saying the award was not confidential.

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8th Circ. Asked To Nix Fraud Tax Credit Suit, $90M Judgment

By Zak Kostro

A man accused of helping form a sham limited liability company that fraudulently received millions in alternative fuel mixture tax credits asked the Eighth Circuit on Tuesday to reverse a judgment of more than $90 million against him, saying he shouldn't be personally liable for the company's conduct.

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DATA CENTERS

AI Data Centers Accused Of Skirting Enviro Permits In Texas

By Nate Beck

Two environmental groups sued Vantage and VoltaGrid in Texas federal court, claiming the AI data center developers are exploiting fast-track permits reserved for minor polluters even though their projects would use as much power as about one-fifth of the homes in San Antonio.

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Data Center Power Provider Accelevation Eyes $660M IPO

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Data center power provider Accelevation Holdings on Tuesday outlined a price range for an estimated $660 million initial public offering steered by Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.

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UTILITIES AND POWER

Hydropower Plant Needs More Monitoring, Wash. Panel Says

By Ben Adlin

A Washington appeals panel broadly upheld the state's certification of a hydroelectric power project near the Columbia River on Monday, although the court said officials need to impose additional monitoring and reporting requirements to address potential leakage into the surrounding watershed.

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HVAC Contractor Accused Of $8M 'Mass Save' Rebate Fraud

By Julie Manganis

A group of utility companies that participate in a Massachusetts energy-efficiency incentive program have alleged in state court that an HVAC contractor defrauded the program out of around $8 million through various schemes, including claiming rebates for heat pumps that were never installed.

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RENEWABLES

Green Co. Mulls Paraguay Arbitration Over $665M Project

By Joyce Hanson

A British low-carbon fertilizer company said it is planning to submit a claim to international arbitration against Paraguay over a $665 million investment in a project fueled by renewable power, claiming the country has violated its bilateral investment treaty with the United Kingdom.

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NUCLEAR

Ex-Nuclear Power Workers Ask To Amend Wage-Fixing Suit

By Clara Geoghegan

Former nuclear plant workers are asking a Maryland federal court to let them refile a proposed class action, saying they have new, direct evidence that companies worked together to fix wages in the nuclear energy industry.

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PEOPLE

Sidley Lands Energy Pro In Miami From Squire Patton

By Madison Arnold

Sidley Austin LLP has expanded its energy, transportation and infrastructure capabilities and surpassed 70 lawyers and professionals in its Miami office with a new partner from Squire Patton Boggs LLP.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

How Data Center Projects Can Navigate Wyo. Siting Process

As opposition to data center development grows nationwide, the way that Wyoming is handling the issue through its industrial siting process offers a counterintuitive lesson: More process, not less, can provide both meaningful scrutiny and a clear path forward for projects, says Jeffrey Pope at Holland & Hart.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

Seyfarth Says Data Breach Exposed Social Security Numbers

By Hailey Konnath

Seyfarth Shaw LLP has disclosed a recent data breach that exposed the names and Social Security numbers of at least 300 individuals, according to notices filed with the Texas and California attorneys general.

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Meta Flaunts 'Abuse' Of Atty-Client Privilege, Judge Told

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge ordered Meta on Tuesday to rereview privilege designations on 300 documents in social media addiction litigation, after plaintiffs' lawyers cited a "culture of privilege abuse" epitomized by Instagram swag hats embroidered with "a/c priv" — the shorthand used to log withheld documents.

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Mich. Fed. Judge On 1-Year Leave Over Drunken Driving Case

By Jack Karp

U.S. District Judge Thomas L. Ludington is taking a one-year paid leave of absence from the bench following his misdemeanor conviction for drunken driving, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan announced Tuesday.

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Womble Bond Can't Quit Dutch Client With TM Trial Looming

By Hayley Fowler

Womble Bond Dickinson can't withdraw from a trademark feud that's dragged on for more than five years between U.S. and Dutch software companies, a North Carolina federal judge ruled, saying the firm's exit at this late stage "would be completely disruptive."

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COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Accelerant

Amazon.com Inc.

Ameren Corp.

American Electric Power Co. Inc.

American Petroleum Institute Inc.

Arizona Public Service Co.

BP PLC

Cape Light Compact

Center for Biological Diversity Inc.

Chevron Corp.

Columbia Riverkeeper

Constellation Energy Corp.

DTE Energy Co.

Discord Inc.

Dominion Energy Inc.

Duke Energy Corp.

Electric Reliability Council of Texas Inc.

Energy Northwest

Entergy Corp.

Environmental Integrity Project

Exxon Mobil Corp.

FirstEnergy Corp.

Instagram Inc.

International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes

Invenergy LLC

Liberty Utilities Co.

London Stock Exchange Group PLC

Los Angeles Unified School District

Luminant Generation Co. LLC

Meta Platforms Inc.

NSTAR

Nasdaq Inc.

National Grid PLC

NextEra Energy Inc.

Ohio State University

Olympus Partners LP

PG&E Corp.

Plains All American Pipeline L.P.

Plains GP Holdings LP

Public Citizen Inc.

Public Service Enterprise Group Inc.

Renaissance Capital

Roblox Corp.

STP Nuclear Operating Co.

Sable Offshore Corp.

Shell PLC

Sierra Club

Snap Inc.

Southern California Edison Co.

Talen Energy Corp.

TerraPower LLC

The Southern Co. Inc.

TikTok Inc.

TotalEnergies SE

Twitter Inc.

Unitil Corporation

Vantage Data Centers

Vistra Corp.

VoltaGrid LLC

Western Environmental Law Center

X Corp.

Xcel Energy Inc.

YouTube Inc.

Zurich Insurance Group AG

LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Anderson Law Firm

Arnold & Porter

Bailey & Glasser

Berger Montague

Blank Rome

Cohen Milstein

Covington & Burling

Cozen O'Connor

Cravath Swaine

DiCello Levitt

Dykema Gossett

Eckert Seamans

Ellis & Winters

Gibson Dunn

Goodwin Procter

Greenberg Traurig

Gressley Kaplin

Hagens Berman

Handley Farah

Hausfeld LLP

Holland & Hart

Hueston Hennigan

Hunton Andrews

Jenner & Block

King & Spalding

Kirkland & Ellis

Kramer LLP

Kramon & Graham

Latham & Watkins

Lewis Brisbois

Lewis Rice

Lieff Cabraser

Lockridge Grindal

McDermott Will & Schulte

McGuireWoods

Miles & Stockbridge

Morgan Lewis

O'Melveny & Myers

Pillsbury Winthrop

Quinn Emanuel

Rich May PC

Seyfarth Shaw

Sher Edling

Sidley Austin

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett

Skadden Arps

Squire Patton

Sullivan & Cromwell

Taft Stettinius

Troutman

Van Ness Feldman

Watters Wolf

Weil Gotshal

White & Case

WilmerHale

Womble Bond

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Bureau of Industry and Security

California Attorney General's Office

Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation

European Commission

European Union

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Fish and Wildlife Service

New Jersey Board of Public Utilities

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Superior Court of Massachusetts

Tennessee Valley Authority

Texas Attorney General's Office

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Department of Energy

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Transportation

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. District Court for the District of Maine

U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

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

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

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

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California

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

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

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Supreme Court

Washington Attorney General's Office

Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality