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Environmental
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January 23, 2025
Federal Agencies Must Order Full Return To Office By Friday
Federal agencies will order employees to return to the office by Friday at 5 p.m. to end the "national embarrassment" that remote work policies have fueled, the Office of Personnel Management said, following President Donald Trump's executive order.
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January 23, 2025
NC Biogas Co. Sidesteps Sanctions For Now In Lender Fight
A North Carolina Business Court judge held back on sanctioning a biogas company for allegedly violating a court order to pay its lender before pursuing new contracts on a renewable energy project, reasoning that he needs more information about the terms of the agreement to see if a contempt ruling is warranted.
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January 23, 2025
Senate Energy Committee Greenlights Energy, Interior Picks
A U.S. Senate energy panel on Thursday advanced President Donald Trump's nominees to lead the U.S. Departments of Energy and the Interior, setting them up for confirmation by the full Senate.
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January 23, 2025
Trump's Pick To Lead EPA Advances In Senate
President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency cleared a Senate committee vote Thursday, setting up a vote in the full chamber for his confirmation.
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January 22, 2025
Apple Sued Over Alleged PFAS In Smartwatch Wristbands
Apple Inc. is at least the second smartwatch maker to be hit with a proposed class action lawsuit accusing it of knowingly using toxic forever chemicals in manufacturing the devices' wristbands, according to a complaint filed in California federal court.
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January 22, 2025
Pa. Justices: NGA Doesn't Bar State Board's Permit Reviews
Pennsylvania's Environmental Hearing Board should have heard challenges to state regulators' approval of a natural gas compressor station, not dismissed them for lack of jurisdiction, Pennsylvania justices said Wednesday, ruling that the board's consideration of such disputes is not preempted by the federal Natural Gas Act.
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January 22, 2025
Former Pioneer CEO Sues FTC Over Exxon Board Block
The former CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources, Scott Sheffield, accused the Federal Trade Commission of violating his constitutional rights by barring him from serving on Exxon Mobil Corp.'s board when the agency cleared a $60 billion merger between Exxon and Pioneer.
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January 22, 2025
Justices Urged To Affirm Texas Nuke Waste Site Ruling
Several states, Texas politicians and landowner groups threw their support behind the Lone Star State's fight against a temporary nuclear waste storage facility, telling the U.S. Supreme Court the federal government doesn't have the power to authorize the site.
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January 22, 2025
Investor Alleges Utility Put Profits Above Storm Preparation
CenterPoint Energy Inc.'s board of directors was hit with a lawsuit Wednesday from a shareholder who alleges the company's handling of Hurricane Beryl revealed it engaged in "financial engineering" designed to boost profits over operational efficiency.
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January 22, 2025
Space Explorer Voyager Technologies Confidentially Files IPO
Defense and space exploration company Voyager Technologies Inc. said Wednesday it has confidentially filed plans for an initial public offering, marking the second company from the industry to join the IPO pipeline this week and potentially benefiting from increased government funding for space travel.
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January 22, 2025
'The Hills' Reality Stars Latest To Sue Over Palisades Fire
"The Hills" reality TV show stars Spencer and Heidi Pratt are among the latest Palisades Fire victims to sue the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power alleging an empty local reservoir made it more difficult for first responders to put out the devastating blaze.
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January 22, 2025
8th Circ. Finds Monsanto PCB Case Can Stay In Federal Court
The Eighth Circuit on Wednesday allowed General Electric Co. and others to keep in Missouri federal court a suit by Monsanto Co. seeking defense for suits against Monsanto over polychlorinated biphenyls, finding that the suit was removed to federal court on time.
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January 22, 2025
Full DC Circ. Stands By Wipeout Of FERC Pipeline Approvals
The D.C. Circuit has rejected Williams Cos.' requests to reconsider a panel's decision scrapping Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approvals of a five-state expansion of the company's Transco pipeline system, despite more than a half-dozen amicus parties backing the rehearing requests.
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January 22, 2025
Navajo Nation Looks To Block Federal Mineral Leasing Ban
The Navajo Nation has sued the U.S. Department of the Interior in a bid to block a Biden administration order withdrawing federal land from new mineral leasing and development near a national park in New Mexico, saying the ban would cause tribal allottees to suffer financial hardships.
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January 22, 2025
Army, SD Tribe Fight For Early Win In Dakota Access Row
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers are both asking for early wins in a challenge to shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline over alleged violations of federal environmental laws.
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January 22, 2025
White House Shutters DEI Offices, Puts Workers On Leave
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management told federal agencies to close offices focused on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives by Wednesday evening and lay off staffers by Jan. 31, part of President Donald Trump's larger efforts to combat workplace diversity programs.
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January 21, 2025
What Gov't Contractors Must Know About Trump Exec Actions
President Donald Trump's flood of executive orders following his inauguration included a number of measures targeted at or broadly affecting federal contractors, such as lifting Biden administration antidiscrimination and climate change-related requirements and restarting border wall construction.
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January 21, 2025
Navy, Tetra Tech Strike $97M Deal Over Navy Cleanup Work
The U.S. Navy and a Tetra Tech unit have reached two settlements amounting to $97 million, resolving claims the subsidiary billed the Navy for radiation remediation services at a former Navy shipyard in San Francisco that it did not actually perform.
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January 21, 2025
EPA Defends Power Plant Effluent Rule At 8th Circ.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is asking the Eighth Circuit to reject challenges to its rule setting new wastewater limitations for coal-fired power plants that have been lodged by green groups, Republican-led states, utilities and industry organizations.
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January 21, 2025
SoCal Edison Must Hand Over Data In Eaton Fire Suit
A Los Angeles County judge ordered Southern California Edison Co. on Tuesday to produce data from its distribution circuits in the Altadena, California, neighborhood to a victim of the Eaton Fire, the first step in litigation over this month's deadly and destructive blaze.
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January 21, 2025
EPA Tells DC Circ. Its PFAS Superfund Rule Is On Solid Ground
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has claimed that it is perfectly within its authority to label two forever chemicals as "hazardous substances" under the federal Superfund law, urging the D.C. Circuit to toss an industry group's challenge to its designation powers.
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January 21, 2025
EPA Tells Justices That Air Pollution Cases Belong In DC Circ.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is urging the nation's highest court to rule that most judicial challenges to its air pollution rules belong in the D.C. Circuit, while small petroleum refiners say other, regional circuit courts are proper venues.
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January 21, 2025
Trump EV Rollbacks Spell Regulatory Whiplash For Auto Cos.
President Donald Trump's rollback of Biden administration policies intended to accelerate the U.S. auto industry's movement toward electric vehicles creates new uncertainties for a domestic EV supply chain that was already grappling with slowing consumer demand, experts say.
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January 21, 2025
Too Early For Liability In Pollution Suit, Sherwin-Williams Says
Sherwin-Williams has urged a New Jersey court to reject the Garden State's bid to find it liable for natural resource damages at the site of one of its former paint manufacturing plants, arguing the state's motion is premature.
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January 21, 2025
Trump Moratorium Is An Ill Wind For Project Development
President Donald Trump's sweeping directive to halt federal reviews and permitting of wind farms creates fresh uncertainty over whether many projects slated to be built can secure necessary approval and financing.
Expert Analysis
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Think Like A Lawyer: 1 Type Of Case Complexity Stands Out
In contrast to some cases that appear complex due to voluminous evidence or esoteric subject matter, a different kind of complexity involves tangled legal and factual questions, each with a range of possible outcomes, which require a “sliding scale” approach instead of syllogistic reasoning, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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How Litigation, Supply Chains Buffeted Offshore Wind In 2024
U.S. offshore wind developers continue to face a range of challenges — including litigation brought by local communities and interest groups, ongoing supply chain issues, and a lack of interconnection and transmission infrastructure — in addition to uncertainty surrounding federal energy policy under the second Trump administration, say attorneys at Liskow & Lewis.
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What Bisphenol S Prop 65 Listing Will Mean For Industry
The imminent addition of bisphenol S — a chemical used in millions of products — to California's Proposition 65 list will have sweeping compliance and litigation implications for companies in the retail, food and beverage, paper, manufacturing and personal care product industries, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Note 3 Simple Types Of Legal Complexity
Cases can appear complex for several reasons — due to the number of issues, the volume of factual and evidentiary sources, and the sophistication of those sources — but the same basic technique can help lawyers tame their arguments into a simple and persuasive message, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Permitting, Offtake Among Offshore Wind Challenges In 2024
Although federal offshore wind development started to pick up this year, many challenges to the industry became apparent as well — including slow federal permitting, the pitfalls of restarting permits after changes in project status, and the difficulties of negotiating economically viable offtake agreements, say attorneys at Liskow & Lewis.
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Series
Gardening Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Beyond its practical and therapeutic benefits, gardening has bolstered important attributes that also apply to my litigation practice, including persistence, patience, grit and authenticity, says Christopher Viceconte at Gibbons.
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Litigation Inspiration: Reframing Document Review
For attorneys — new ones especially — there is much fulfillment to find in document review by reflecting on how important, interesting and pleasant it can be, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
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The Fashion Industry Should Prep Now For State PFAS Bans
New York and California have each passed legislation regulating PFAS in apparel and other textiles, so retailers should consult with manufacturers and suppliers and obtain the requisite certification documents as soon as possible to avoid disruptions in supply chains, say attorneys at Venable.
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California Supreme Court's Year In Review
Attorneys at Horvitz & Levy highlight notable decisions on major questions from the California Supreme Court's last term, including voter initiatives, hostile work environment and the economic loss rule.
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DC Circ. Decision Opens Door To NEPA Regulation Litigation
A recent D.C. Circuit decision in Marin Audubon Society v. Federal Aviation Administration could open the door to more litigation over the White House Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act regulations, and could affect how many agencies conduct and interpret environmental assessments, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.
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Service Providers Must Mitigate 'Secondary Target' Risks
A lawsuit recently filed in an Illinois federal court against marketing agency Publicis over its work for opioid manufacturers highlights an uptick in litigation against professional service providers hired by clients that engaged in alleged misconduct — so potential targets of such suits should be sure to conduct proper risk analysis and mitigation, say attorneys at Dechert.
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Opinion
FTC Actions In Oil Cases Go Against Its Own Rulemaking
Two recent Federal Trade Commission actions concerning the oil and gas industry appear to defy its own merger guidelines, with allegations that fall far short of the commission's own standard — raising serious questions about the agency's current approach, say attorneys at Clifford Chance.
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How Global Data Center Regs May Influence US Policies
As regulators around the world react to the growth of data centers, and their increasing consumption of energy, water and land, international policies in this area may influence how the incoming U.S. administration regulates data centers in this country, say attorneys at HWG.
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Series
Flying Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Achieving my childhood dream of flying airplanes made me a better lawyer — and a better person — because it taught me I can conquer difficult goals when I leave my comfort zone, focus on the demands of the moment and commit to honing my skills, says Ivy Cadle at Baker Donelson.
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Post-Election Implications For The EPA's Methane Rules
Amid the U.S. Supreme Court's recent denial of requests to halt implementation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's methane rule in two suits, and given the outcome of the election, a complete reversal of the methane rule is expected, but state-level policymaking and enforcement will continue, says John Watson at Spencer Fane.