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Environmental
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January 10, 2025
FAR Council Pulls Proposed GHG Emissions Disclosure Rule
The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council on Friday withdrew a pending rule that aimed to require "major" federal contractors to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and to set emissions reduction targets, saying the Biden administration lacks sufficient time to finalize the proposal.
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January 10, 2025
FWS Rejects Bids To Strip Protections From Grizzly Bears
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has rejected petitions from Montana and Wyoming to strip federal Endangered Species Act protections of grizzly bears in the Northern Rocky Mountains, saying it will instead look to shrink the geographic areas where they are protected.
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January 10, 2025
NC Co. Sues State, Duke Energy Over Lake Bed Compensation
A North Carolina company is suing the state and Duke Energy Carolinas LLC in North Carolina federal court for compensation, after a state high court took away its lake bed parcel following a land dispute with the energy company and other parties.
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January 10, 2025
Loggers, Landowners Ask 9th Circ. To Revive Antitrust Suit
A group of loggers and landowners have asked the Ninth Circuit to revive their case accusing Iron Triangle LLC of monopolizing logging and related services in part of the Pacific Northwest after a lower court's dismissal.
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January 10, 2025
Faster Permits Needed For Next G's, Wireless Cos. Say
Wireless infrastructure builders are hoping for a more inviting regulatory environment at the federal and state levels as technology progresses and have put broadband permitting reform at the top of their legislative wish list for 2025.
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January 10, 2025
Contractor Seeks Coverage For $2.5M Grass Damage Row
An air services company told a New York federal court Friday that an AIG unit cited a raft of inapplicable exclusions to deny commercial general liability coverage over claims that it caused nearly $2.5 million in damages by aerially applying herbicides on the wrong areas.
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January 10, 2025
Kiewit's Seattle Marine Yard Runoff Violates CWA, Suit Says
Kiewit Corp. is the target of a citizen Clean Water Act suit accusing the construction company of violating environmental permits by failing to prevent polluted stormwater from its Seattle marine yard from running into a river and bay.
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January 10, 2025
Ga. Solar Farm Damages Fight Settles Ahead Of April Trial
A Georgia couple has reached a settlement with the owners and developers of a neighboring solar farm and their contractor just two months after a judge ordered that a second trial was needed to determine damages in the multimillion-dollar case.
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January 10, 2025
US Trustee Balks At Ch. 11 Bid Protections In First Mode Case
A package of bid protections for the stalking horse of bankrupt electric-engine developer First Mode needs to be reined in, the Office of the U.S. Trustee has said, urging a Delaware bankruptcy judge to reject the debtor's request that expenses and fees tied to the $15 million bid be paid as priority claims.
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January 10, 2025
The Firefighting Foam 'Forever Chemicals' MDL: A Snapshot
A round of big settlements was recently completed seven years into a sprawling multidistrict litigation over chemical companies' liability for alleged harms caused by exposure to so-called forever chemicals in firefighting foam. Here, Law360 examines what’s still at stake in the ongoing litigation.
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January 10, 2025
Treasury, IRS Plan Rules For Clean Transportation Fuel Credit
Treasury and the IRS released guidance Friday for producers of transportation fuel hoping to qualify for the newly available clean fuels production tax credit, saying they plan to release rules clarifying which entities qualify for the credit and how producers can determine allowable emissions levels.
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January 10, 2025
KKR, PSP Buy $2.8B Stake In American Electric Power Units
Private equity giant KKR and Canada-based Public Sector Pension Investment Board, both advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, have agreed to take a minority stake in Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP-led American Electric Power's transmission companies in Ohio, Indiana and Michigan, in a $2.82 billion deal.
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January 10, 2025
Taxation With Representation: Kirkland, Davis Polk, Wachtell
In this week's Taxation With Representation, Constellation acquires Calpine, Cintas seeks a deal with UniFirst Corp., Stryker Corp. acquires Inari Medical Inc., and Paychex Inc. buys Paycor.
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January 10, 2025
Clark Hill Adds To Environmental Team In Colorado
Two seasoned environmental attorneys have come aboard Clark Hill PLC to enhance the firm's environmental and natural resources capabilities for clients in Boulder, Colorado, and beyond.
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January 10, 2025
Treasury Floats Rules For Commercial Green Vehicle Credits
The U.S. Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service proposed rules Friday for obtaining tax credits for commercial green vehicles under provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, suggesting ways for determining the credit amount and identifying which vehicles are eligible.
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January 10, 2025
Constellation Energy Buying Calpine In $26.6B Megadeal
Constellation has agreed to acquire Calpine at a net purchase price of $26.6 billion, in a deal that will merge two of the largest power generation companies in the U.S., the companies announced Friday.
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January 09, 2025
Colo. Oil Co. Says Unfair Order Threatens Its Demise
Oil and gas operator K.P. Kauffman Co. Inc. is asking a Colorado state judge to scrap a $5.8 million penalty against it, claiming regulators unlawfully imposed an unfair order that threatens to drive it into insolvency and bankruptcy.
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January 09, 2025
Airlines Say 9th Circ. Should Mull Seattle Airport Pollution Suit
Delta Air Lines and Alaska Airlines have told a Washington federal court that the Ninth Circuit should immediately consider the jurisdictional and preemption issues raised in a proposed class action from property owners and residents over alleged flight-path pollution near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
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January 09, 2025
Colo. Urges 10th Circ. Not To Vacate Air Emissions Plan
Colorado told the Tenth Circuit that a green group challenging an air emissions permitting program in the state misled a panel of judges during oral arguments by asserting that eliminating the program would resolve its concerns.
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January 09, 2025
AI Startup Anthropic Seeks $60B Valuation, Plus More Rumors
Artificial-intelligence startup Anthropic is seeking $2 billion in a new funding round that would value the company at $60 billion, while fashion giant Shein is now eyeing a mid-2025 initial public offering in London and Constellation Energy is lining up a $30 billion bid to acquire electricity provider Calpine. Here, Law360 breaks down the notable deal rumors from the past week.
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January 09, 2025
Feds Award Millions To Tribes For Safe Water, Homes, Climate
With a week left in its term, the Biden administration has doled out millions to states and tribal communities throughout the country to boost efforts toward more reliable water sources, to take on housing health and safety hazards and to continue the ongoing battle against climate change.
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January 09, 2025
US Steel And Nippon's Lawsuit Seen As 'Hail Mary' Attempt
President Joe Biden may not have put forth an airtight national security argument for blocking Nippon Steel's planned acquisition of U.S. Steel, but the companies' subsequent lawsuit is still highly unlikely to earn them another chance at making the deal happen, according to legal experts.
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January 09, 2025
Calif. Insurance Chief Blocks Policy Cancellation In Fire Zones
Insurance companies can't cancel or refuse to renew homeowners coverage for policyholders in the immediate vicinity of the Los Angeles wildfires for one year, the California Department of Insurance announced as fires continue to ravage Southern California.
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January 09, 2025
IRS Gets First Dibs On $1M BP Oil Spill Payout, 11th Circ. Says
The IRS gets first priority to a $1 million settlement BP paid to a staffing company that racked up $23 million in federal tax debt and went bankrupt following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed, denying an insurer's claim to the money.
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January 09, 2025
Wind Power Substation Is Quiet Enough, Mass. Justices Say
Massachusetts' top court on Thursday gave the green light for an electric substation connected to an 800-megawatt wind turbine generation facility in federal waters south of Martha's Vineyard, rejecting a resident's argument that the new facility would be too noisy.
Expert Analysis
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A Narrow Window Of Opportunity To Fix Energy Transmission
A post-election effort of the coming lame-duck congressional session may be the only possibility to pass bipartisan legislation to solve the national grid's capacity deficiencies, which present the greatest impediment to realizing state and federal energy transition and emissions reduction goals, says David Smith at Manatt.
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How Project 2025 Could Upend Federal ESG Policies
If implemented, Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation's policy playbook for a Republican presidential administration, would likely seek to deploy antitrust law to target ESG initiatives, limit pension fund managers' focus to pecuniary factors and spell doom for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate rule, say attorneys at Mintz.
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Navigating FEMA Grant Program For Slope Fixes After Storms
In the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, it is critical for governments, businesses and individuals to understand the legal requirements of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's grant programs to obtain funding for crucial repairs — including restoration of damaged infrastructure caused by landslides and slope failures, says Charles Schexnaildre at Baker Donelson.
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Key Insurance Implications Of Hawaii's Historic GHG Ruling
In Aloha Petroleum v. National Union Fire Insurance, the Hawaii Supreme Court became the first state court to classify greenhouse gasses as pollutants barred from insurance coverage, a ruling likely to be afforded great weight by courts across the country, say Scott Seaman and Gar Lauerman at Hinshaw & Culbertson.
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Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys
Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.
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Opinion
Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code
As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Justice Lebovits On Gilbert And Sullivan
Characters in the 19th century comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan break the rules of good lawyering by shamelessly throwing responsible critical thought to the wind, providing hilarious lessons for lawyers and judges on how to avoid a surfeit of traps and tribulations, say acting New York Supreme Court Justice Gerald Lebovits and law student Tara Scown.
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To Report Or Not To Report Others' Export Control Violations
A recent Bureau of Industry and Security enforcement policy change grants cooperation credit to those that report violations of the Export Administration Regulations committed by others, but the benefits of doing so must be weighed against significant drawbacks, including the costs of preparing and submitting a report, says Megan Lew at Cravath.
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With Esmark Case, SEC Returns Focus To Tender Offer Rules
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent enforcement action against Esmark in connection with its failed bid to acquire U.S. Steel indicates the SEC's renewed attention under Rule 14e‑8 of the Exchange Act on offerors' financial resources as a measure of the veracity of their tender offer communications, say attorneys at MoFo.
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Deadline Extension Highlights PFAS Reporting Complexities
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent extension of reporting and recordkeeping timelines for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act offers relief to the regulated community, but the unprecedented volume of data required means that businesses must remain diligent in their data collection efforts, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
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6th Circ. Preemption Ruling Adds Uncertainty For Car Cos.
Automakers and their suppliers need uniformity under the law to create sufficient scale and viable markets — but the Sixth Circuit's recent decision in Fenner v. General Motors creates more uncertainty around the question of when state law consumer claims related to violations of federal vehicle emissions and fuel economy standards are preempted, say attorneys at Sidley.
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State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape
Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.
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Review Shipping Terms In Light Of These 3 Global Challenges
Given tensions in the Middle East, labor unrest at U.S. ports and the ongoing consequences of climate change, parties involved in maritime shipping must understand the relevant contract provisions and laws that may be implicated during supply chain disruptions in order to mitigate risks, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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Cos. Face Increasing Risk From Environmental Citizen Suits
Environmental citizen suits stepping in to fill the regulatory vacuum concerning consumer goods waste may soon become more common, and the evolving procedural landscape and changes to environmental law may contribute to companies' increased exposure, say J. Michael Showalter and Bradley Rochlen at ArentFox Schiff.
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How BIS' Rule Seeks To Encourage More Voluntary Disclosure
Updated incentives, penalties and enforcement resources in the Bureau of Industry and Security's recently published final rule revising the Export Administration Regulations should help companies decide how to implement export control compliance programs and whether to disclose possible violations, say attorneys at Freshfields.