The first half of 2026 saw the Trump administration's push to restrict renewable energy development hit judicial speed bumps and the U.S. Supreme Court potentially change the course of long-running cases that pit state governments against oil and gas heavyweights. Here are several court decisions that stood out for energy attorneys in the first half of this year.
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TUESDAY, JULY 7, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

Analysis

Top Energy & Enviro Decisions Of 2026: Midyear Report

By Keith Goldberg and Gautama Mehta

The first half of 2026 saw the Trump administration's push to restrict renewable energy development hit judicial speed bumps and the U.S. Supreme Court potentially change the course of long-running cases that pit state governments against oil and gas heavyweights. Here are several court decisions that stood out for energy attorneys in the first half of this year.

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Calif. Judge Says No To Energy Funding Suit Transfer

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

A California federal judge has ruled the Trump administration can't transfer allegations that it unlawfully canceled billions of dollars in energy and infrastructure programs to the U.S. Court of Federal Claims because the claims rest on the same facts as the portion of the complaint it seeks to keep in district court.

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10th Circ. Sides With Gas Wholesalers In Storm Price Hike Suit

By Ganesh Setty

Residential natural gas customers can't pursue wholesalers under Kansas state law for profiteering from a winter storm that caused natural gas prices to spike, the Tenth Circuit ruled Monday, finding their claims federally preempted under the Natural Gas Act.

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POLICY & REGULATION

Analysis

International Trade Policy To Watch In 2nd Half Of 2026

By Dylan Moroses

President Donald Trump's trade strategy continues to disrupt business planning as importers await new U.S. tariffs to mitigate, monitor litigation involving refunds for illegal duties paid and prepare for increased risks of enforcement and unforeseen cost hikes in the second half of 2026. Here, Law360 examines the international trade policy matters to watch for the rest of the year.

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Stakeholders Push For Expanded Brazil Tariff Exemptions

By Dylan Moroses

Industry associations urged the U.S. Trade Representative's Office to expand tariff exemptions for the 25% duty anticipated on Brazilian goods as a result of its alleged unfair trading practices, according to recently published comment letters.

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India, China Call Broad US Forced Labor Tariffs Not Justified

By Jack McLoone

Several U.S. trading partners facing new tariffs over claims of failing to adequately protect against forced labor pushed back on the plan ahead of a public hearing Tuesday, raising concerns that ranged from too-generalized determinations to the U.S. improperly disregarding related measures.

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UTILITIES AND POWER

ConEd Partners Exploit Foreign Workers, Suit Claims

By Holly DeMuth

Two companies partnered with Con Edison targeted immigrants from the country of Georgia and required them to work 50- to 90-hour weeks under conditions "tantamount to human trafficking" for far less than minimum wage, according to a proposed class action filed in New York federal court Monday.

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SUPREME COURT

Analysis

After Tense Terms, Hints Of High Court Harmony With Circuits

By Jeff Overley

Following several U.S. Supreme Court terms teeming with reversals and rebukes of lower appeals courts, the justices this term found fault less often with rulings by circuit judges, who are likely becoming better attuned to the conservative supermajority, attorneys say.

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Analysis

The Moments That Shaped The Monsanto Decision

By Cara Bayles and Steven Trader

U.S. Supreme Court justices forged unusual alliances when they ruled a federal statute preempts claims Monsanto failed to warn consumers its Roundup weed killer may cause cancer. Oral arguments provided insights on the 7-2 outcome, highlighting issues the jurists were grappling with and showcasing rationales that found their way into the opinion.

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Feature

The Funniest Moments Of The Supreme Court's Term

By Jeff Overley

When one of the U.S. Supreme Court's most talkative members suddenly struggled to speak, the atmosphere at oral arguments grew increasingly anxious — until the justice deadpanned that it was an advocate's golden opportunity to avoid a grilling.

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BakerHostetler Hires Ex-Kutak Rock Tax Credits Pro

By Isaac Monterose

BakerHostetler has brought on a former Kutak Rock LLP tax credits partner to its business practice group in Chicago.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

High Court's FCC Fine Ruling Reframes Agency Enforcement

The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T sweeps aside uncertainty about what kinds of regulatory enforcement trigger a Seventh Amendment right, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

Sealing The Deal

How Gibson Dunn Helped SpaceX Pull Off Its $75B Global IPO

By Al Barbarino

When SpaceX completed its record-breaking $75 billion initial public offering last month, the transaction was notable not only for its size — the largest IPO ever — but also for breaking new ground in how public offerings can be structured to reach retail investors around the world.

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CEO Cops To Conspiracy In BigLaw Insider Trading Case

By Sydney Price

A Dubai-based CEO and trader has pled guilty in Massachusetts federal court to charges that he worked with a former BigLaw associate and others to carry out a far-reaching insider trading scheme.

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Justices To Defend Court's Budget In Rare Hill Testimony

By Courtney Bublé

U.S. Supreme Court Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Elena Kagan will testify before House and Senate committees on July 14, marking the first time in seven years that a sitting justice has gone before lawmakers.

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Ex-DOJ Employees Tell Senate To Reject Blanche Nomination

By Emily Sawicki

Hundreds of former Justice Department employees and appointees urged the Senate in a Tuesday letter to reject the nomination of acting Attorney General Todd Blanche for the permanent role, particularly noting what they called Blanche's work toward politicizing the department.

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ChatGPT Edits Weren't 'Knowing' Errors, Conn. Justices Told

By Aaron Keller

A GLG Law LLC lawyer who blamed ChatGPT for misquotes and citation errors in three filings told the Connecticut Supreme Court on Tuesday he did not violate an ethics rule requiring candor to the tribunal because his briefs, though inaccurate, contained correct assertions about the law.

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Ogletree Co-Founder Deakins, 'Beacon Of Wisdom,' Dies At 90

By Emily Johnson

A co-founder of the global labor and employment juggernaut Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC died Monday after decades of helping shape the firm's values of honesty and transparency.

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McCarter Atty's Work 'Fell Short' In $20M Deals, Judge Told

By Brian Steele

McCarter & English LLP and one of its Connecticut attorneys failed to uphold the applicable standard of care when advising insurers on $20 million worth of loan transactions that ultimately fell apart because the borrower stopped paying, an expert witness told a Connecticut state court on Tuesday.

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House Dems Push To Ban Judges From Prediction Markets

By Emily Sawicki

Ranking members of the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday called on the federal judiciary to ban judges from taking part in prediction markets amid growing concerns that court-related wagers could undermine judicial integrity.

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COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

AT&T Inc.

Affordable Care LLC

Amazon.com Inc.

American Petroleum Institute Inc.

Amicus

Axalta Coating Systems Ltd.

Bayer AG

Chevron Corp.

Cisco Systems Inc.

Connecticut Bar Association

Connecticut Fair Housing Center

Consolidated Edison Inc.

EchoStar Corp.

Enbridge Energy Partners LP

Exxon Mobil Corp.

Fort Point Capital

Gerson Lehrman Group Inc.

Johnson & Johnson

Line 5 LLC

LinkedIn Corp.

Meta Platforms Inc.

Monsanto Co.

Nasdaq Inc.

National Retail Federation Inc.

Nestle SA

Occidental Petroleum Corp.

Peloton Interactive Inc.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

UCLA School of Law

University of Maryland Medical System

Verizon Communications Inc.

Vineyard Wind LLC

LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Arnold & Porter

Baker & Hostetler

Baker Botts

Berkowitz Oliver

Bracewell LLP

Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

Clement & Murphy

Covington & Burling

Cozen O'Connor

Dentons

Foulston Siefkin

Gibson Dunn

Goodwin Procter

Harris Beach Murtha

Hinkle Law Firm

Hogan Lovells

Holland & Hart

Hunton Andrews

Jones Day

Keller Postman

Klenda Austerman

Kutak Rock

Latham & Watkins

Logan Vance

McCarter & English

McDonald Carano

McDowell Hetherington

Ogletree Deakins

Outside Legal Counsel PLC

Quinn Emanuel

Sandberg Phoenix

Sanders Warren

Shook Hardy

Sidley Austin

Silver Golub

Skadden Arps

Squire Patton

Stagg Wabnik

Stinson LLP

Sullivan & Cromwell

Susman Godfrey

Thompson Coburn

Triplett Woolf

Troutman

Wallace Saunders

Watstein Terepka

Weil Gotshal

White & Case

Wiggin & Dana

Williams & Connolly

Zeldes Needle

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Bureau of Industry and Security

California Department of Justice

Colorado Attorney General's Office

Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Congressional Research Service

European Union

Federal Aviation Administration

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Federal Communications Commission

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Federal Reserve System

Fish and Wildlife Service

Illinois Attorney General's Office

Internal Revenue Service

NAFTA

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Rhode Island Attorney General's Office

State of Michigan

U.S. Army

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts

U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Department of Energy

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Labor

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii

U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts

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

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

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

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

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Supreme Court

US Office of Management and Budget

Washington Attorney General's Office

Wisconsin Department of Justice

World Trade Organization