Energy

  • February 05, 2025

    Doubt Over NEPA Regs' Future Brings New Risk For Projects

    Recent court decisions and President Donald Trump have jeopardized long-standing federal regulations for environmental reviews, introducing uncertainty in the permit application and approval process for projects ranging from roads to pipelines that could lead to delays and new litigation.

  • February 05, 2025

    Chicago's Climate Suit Belongs In Federal Court, Judge Hears

    The city of Chicago should not be allowed to take environmental deception claims against the nation's largest oil producers back to state court because the city's suit targets conduct performed largely for the federal government, a judge heard during a Wednesday hearing.

  • February 05, 2025

    Monolithic's Investors Say Co. Botched Nvidia Orders

    Power management component manufacturer Monolithic Power Systems Inc. has been hit with a proposed shareholder class action alleging it hid critical defects in power modules used by its largest customer, Nvidia Corp., that led the artificial intelligence chipmaker to cancel orders, harming Monolithic's revenue.

  • February 05, 2025

    Lyondell Leak Is On Job Foreman, Not Valve Maker, Jury Told

    A valve maker indicated to a Houston jury on Wednesday that a 2021 chemical leak at a LyondellBasell plant was the result of poor communication between a plant operator and a now-deceased Turn2 Specialty Cos. contractor, not the valve's design.

  • February 05, 2025

    NJ's Climate Change Suit Against Energy Cos. Tossed

    A New Jersey state judge on Wednesday threw out the Garden State's lawsuit accusing fossil fuel companies of concealing the climate change risks of their products, finding the state's claims are preempted by federal law.

  • February 05, 2025

    Ga. Judge Balks At Zurich's Claim Of Surprise Testimony

    A Georgia federal judge has rejected Zurich American Insurance's bid to strike supposed surprise testimony from a recent trial where it lost $12.2 million over a disputed rain damage claim from a solar farm, ruling Wednesday that the real surprise was Zurich's belated and meritless objections.

  • February 05, 2025

    China Hits Trump Tariffs With Mostly Symbolic WTO Challenge

    The Chinese government has challenged the Trump administration's new 10% tariff at the World Trade Organization, alleging violations of key global trade rules, even as years of U.S.-led gridlock has rendered the Geneva body mostly defunct as a dispute resolution forum.

  • February 05, 2025

    6th Circ. Judge Unsure Of Jury Instruction In Bribery Case

    A Sixth Circuit judge seemed skeptical Wednesday of the bribery and racketeering conspiracy standards a jury used to convict former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and Republican lobbyist Matthew Borges in connection with the FirstEnergy bailout scandal, suggesting that all campaign contributions could be called bribery.

  • February 05, 2025

    GOP Lawmakers Move To Scrap Methane Emissions Fee

    Republican lawmakers revived legislation seeking to block implementation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's methane emissions fee, as part of a broader effort to bolster the Trump administration's U.S. energy dominance policy.

  • February 05, 2025

    Cleveland-Cliffs Wants 'Un-American' US Steel Suit Tossed

    Cleveland-Cliffs and its CEO have asked a Pennsylvania judge to toss a lawsuit filed against them by Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel, calling the suit "un-American" while claiming that the plaintiffs' "sputtering disapproval" of the defendants' statements doesn't hold up in court.

  • February 04, 2025

    Wheeling & Appealing: The Latest Must-Know Appellate Action

    February is off to a rip-roaring start in several circuits, and there's plenty more action ahead, including a moment of truth for judiciary policymaking that has managed to anger both the defense and plaintiffs bars. We'll explore all that in this edition of Wheeling & Appealing, which also includes an appellate quiz pegged to recent presidential news.

  • February 04, 2025

    Del. Judge Tells Fuel Cell Co. Investors To Filter Imprecise Suit

    A Delaware federal judge on Tuesday ruled that investors of hydrogen fuel cell company Plug Power Inc. must submit more particular details to support their allegation that shareholders were damaged by the company's failure to disclose production challenges, saying it is not the court's responsibility to filter out evidence.

  • February 04, 2025

    Calif. Partly Beats Challenge To Climate Disclosure Laws

    A California federal judge has trimmed a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups over the state's corporate climate disclosure rules, finding the groups failed to state a claim with respect to two causes of action.

  • February 04, 2025

    'Every Breath' A 'Struggle' For Lyondell Leak Worker, Jury Told

    A lung specialist told a Houston jury Tuesday that he would be "surprised" if the only surviving repairman who worked on a leak at a Texas LyondellBasell plant lived longer than 15 years without major medical intervention due to his chemical exposure four years ago.

  • February 04, 2025

    5th Circ. Mulls If Green Orgs. Have Injury In Injection Well Case

    A Fifth Circuit panel pondered whether environmental groups will suffer an injury adequate to challenge underground injection wells in Louisiana, asking during oral arguments Tuesday whether the groups can bring a legal claim for an event 50 years down the road.

  • February 04, 2025

    EPA, Interior Leaders Unveil Focus On US Energy Production

    The heads of the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency unveiled plans for their agencies that largely focus on bolstering President Donald Trump's U.S. energy dominance policy. 

  • February 04, 2025

    AI Clean Energy Co. SPAC Suit Should Be Zapped, Judge Says

    A federal magistrate judge has recommended dismissing, without prejudice, a derivative shareholder suit accusing the top brass of Stem Inc., an artificial intelligence-driven clean energy company, of making misleading statements leading up to a conflicted merger with a special purpose acquisition company, saying no one should have to "connect the dots" to figure out what is specifically being alleged against them. 

  • February 04, 2025

    Pushing The Envelope In Climate Law: Murder Charges

    Climate change legal advocates are pointing to wildfires in Los Angeles, hurricanes in the Southeast and a regulation-averse presidential administration as evidence that local prosecutors should begin going after fossil fuel companies with criminal charges — up to and including homicide.

  • February 04, 2025

    Mich. Supreme Court Says City's Electricity Fee Is Illegal Tax

    A franchise fee added to East Lansing, Michigan, residents' energy bills is a disguised tax, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled Monday, saying the fee was used to raise revenue for the city without first being approved by voters.

  • February 04, 2025

    DLA Piper Partner To Testify At Cognizant Evidence Hearing

    Prosecutors told a New Jersey federal judge Tuesday that the managing partner of DLA Piper's Houston office will testify at a Feb. 18 evidentiary hearing in a criminal bribery case against two former executives of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., which tapped the law firm for an internal investigation into the alleged corrupt scheme in India.

  • February 04, 2025

    White House Lacks Authority To Issue NEPA Regs, Judge Says

    The White House Council on Environmental Quality has no authority to issue binding National Environmental Policy Act regulations, a North Dakota judge has ruled, scrapping challenged regulations the Biden administration had enacted.

  • February 04, 2025

    6th Circ. Urged To Back $600M Train Derailment Deal

    Norfolk Southern and East Palestine, Ohio, residents defended a $600 million class settlement in Sixth Circuit briefs Monday, saying the deal provides meaningful relief to people and businesses impacted by a 2023 train derailment and release of toxic chemicals.

  • February 04, 2025

    Wash. Gov. Orders Look At Data Centers' Tax Revenue Impact

    Washington's governor issued an executive order directing the state's Department of Revenue to create a work group to examine the impact of data centers on the state's tax revenue and economy and recommend policies to address tax revenue needs in relation to other priorities.

  • February 04, 2025

    US, Osage Nation Fight Bid To Stay $4.2M Wind Farm Order

    The U.S. government is fighting a bid by Enel Green Power North America to stay a $4.2 million judgment and permanent injunction that requires it to remove 84 wind turbines from the Osage Nation's reservation, arguing that the company is unlikely to prevail in a Tenth Circuit appeal.

  • February 04, 2025

    Veteran Energy Attorney Joins Baker Botts In Austin

    Baker Botts LLP announced Tuesday that an experienced energy attorney who's spent over 30 years working in various government and private practice roles has joined the firm's office in Austin, Texas, as a partner.

Expert Analysis

  • What Nearshoring Growth In Americas Means For Patents

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    With the new U.S. administration potentially focused on implementing draconian trade restrictions, nearshoring in the Americas is expected to grow, and patent prosecution attorneys will be kept on their toes as the patent landscape from country to country continues to evolve, says Ernest Huang at Procopio.

  • Series

    Coaching Little League Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While coaching poorly played Little League Baseball early in the morning doesn't sound like a good time, I love it — and the experience has taught me valuable lessons about imperfection, compassion and acceptance that have helped me grow as a person and as a lawyer, says Alex Barnett at DiCello Levitt.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2025

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    Lawyers and their clients must be prepared to navigate an evolving litigation funding market in 2025, made more complicated by a new administration and the increasing overall cost of litigation, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

  • How FTC Sent A $5.6M Warning Against Jumping The Gun

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    The Federal Trade Commission's recent record $5.6 million "gun jumping" action against Verdun Oil, for allegedly exerting control over EP Energy before the mandatory waiting period under U.S. antitrust law expired, warns companies that they must continue to operate independently during review, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • The Blueprint For A National Bitcoin Reserve

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    The new administration has the opportunity to pave the way for a U.S.-backed crypto reserve, which could conceptually function as a strategic asset akin to traditional reserves like gold markets, hedge against economic instability, and influence global crypto adoption, say attorneys at Duane Morris.

  • Rethinking Litigation Risk And What It Really Means To Win

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    Attorneys have a tendency to overestimate litigation risk before summary judgment and underestimate risk after it, but an eight-stage litigation framework can clarify risk at different points and help litigators reassess what true success looks like in any particular case, says Joshua Libling at Arcadia Finance.

  • Nixing NRC Oversight Of Small Reactors Could Cut Both Ways

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    A lawsuit in a Texas federal court aims to abolish the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's authority over small modular reactors, which the plaintiffs contend will unleash new and innovative technology — but the resulting patchwork of state regulations could increase costs for the nuclear industry, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • How DOGE's Bite Can Live Up To Its Bark

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    All signs suggest that the Department of Government Efficiency will be an important part of the new Trump administration, with ample tools at its disposal to effectuate change, particularly with an attentive Republican-controlled Congress, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Proactively Managing Tariff Impacts On Megaprojects

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    President-elect Donald Trump's proposed tariffs may compound the complexity, duration and risks associated with financing and building large-scale infrastructure projects — so owners and contractors should plan to take possible tariff-related cost and schedule overruns into account when drafting contracts, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • New York Climate Superfund Law May Face Preemption Fight

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    New York state's new climate superfund law highlights a growing trend of states supplementing their climate litigation efforts with legislative initiatives — but it will likely encounter the same federal preemption questions raised about state and local lawsuits seeking redress for climate harms, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • US-China Deal Considerations Amid Cross-Border Uncertainty

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    With China seemingly set to respond to the incoming U.S. administration's call for strategic decoupling and tariffs, companies on both sides of the Pacific should explore deals and internal changes to mitigate risks and overcome hurdles to their strategic plans, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Playing Rugby Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My experience playing rugby, including a near-fatal accident, has influenced my legal practice on a professional, organizational and personal level by showing me the importance of maintaining empathy, fostering team empowerment and embracing the art of preparation, says James Gillenwater at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Updated FWS Regs Will Streamline Right-Of-Way Permitting

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    Although the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's final rule covering rights-of-way across lands administered by the service will bring increased up-front fees and stricter permit terms and conditions, it also provides a clearer application process and should reduce permitting delays and total costs, say attorneys at Holland & Hart.

  • Nippon, US Steel Face Long Odds On Merger Challenge

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    Following the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States' review of Japan's Nippon Steel's proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel, the companies face a formidable uphill battle in challenging the president's exercise of authority to block the deal on national security grounds, say attorneys at Kirkland.

  • Opinion

    No, Litigation Funders Are Not 'Fleeing' The District Of Del.

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    A recent study claimed that litigation funders have “fled” Delaware federal court due to a standing order requiring disclosure of third-party financing, but responsible funders have no problem litigating in this jurisdiction, and many other factors could explain the decline in filings, say Will Freeman and Sarah Tsou at Omni Bridgeway.

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