Environmental

  • January 13, 2025

    Justices Reject Utah's Effort To Wrest Land From Feds

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected Utah's claims that the federal government is stifling economic activity in the state by unconstitutionally hoarding and profiting from public lands.

  • January 13, 2025

    Justices Pass On Challenge To Mass. Offshore Wind Project

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review the federal government's approval of a large offshore wind energy project in the waters off of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

  • January 13, 2025

    Justices Again Refuse To Review State Climate Torts

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday again refused to wade into climate change tort litigation brought by state and local governments against fossil fuel companies, rejecting a request by energy giants to nix a suit lodged by Honolulu.

  • January 10, 2025

    DeSantis Vows More Money, Control Over Everglades Projects

    Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis pledged to recommend $805 million of the state budget for continuing efforts in Everglades restoration and promised to take more control over water management, saying he hopes to work with the incoming Trump administration to expedite projects in order to reduce time and taxpayer expense.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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. 

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Collecting Art Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The therapeutic aspects of appreciating and collecting art improve my legal practice by enhancing my observation skills, empathy, creativity and cultural awareness, says attorney Michael McCready.

  • Using Primacy And Recency Effects In Opening Statements

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    By understanding and strategically employing the primacy and recency effects in opening statements, attorneys can significantly enhance their persuasive impact, ensuring that their narrative is both compelling and memorable from the outset, says Bill Kanasky at Courtroom Sciences.

  • Opinion

    Supreme Court Must Halt For-Profit Climate Tort Proliferation

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    If the U.S. Supreme Court does not seize the opportunity presented by Honolulu v. Sunoco to reassert federal authority over interstate pollution regulation, the resulting frenzy of profit-driven environmental mass torts against energy companies will stunt American competitiveness and muddle climate policy, says Gale Norton at Liberty Energy.

  • Litigation Inspiration: Honoring Your Learned Profession

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    About 30,000 people who took the bar exam in July will learn they passed this fall, marking a fitting time for all attorneys to remember that they are members in a specialty club of learned professionals — and the more they can keep this in mind, the more benefits they will see, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Opinion

    AI May Limit Key Learning Opportunities For Young Attorneys

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    The thing that’s so powerful about artificial intelligence is also what’s most scary about it — its ability to detect patterns may curtail young attorneys’ chance to practice the lower-level work of managing cases, preventing them from ever honing the pattern recognition skills that undergird creative lawyering, says Sarah Murray at Trialcraft.

  • A Class Action Trend Tests Limit Of Courts' Equity Powers

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    A troubling trend has developed in federal class action litigation as some counsel and judges attempt to push injunctive relief classes under Rule 23(b)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure beyond the traditional limits of federal courts' equitable powers, say attorneys at Jones Day.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: September Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy identifies practice tips from four recent class certification rulings involving denial of Medicare reimbursements, automobile insurance disputes, veterans' rights and automobile defects.

  • 6 Tips For Trying Cases Away From Home

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    A truly national litigation practice, by definition, often requires trying cases in jurisdictions across the country, which presents unique challenges that require methodical preparation and coordination both within the trial team and externally, say Edward Bennett and Suzanne Salgado at Williams & Connolly.

  • A Blueprint For Structuring An Effective Plaintiff Case Story

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    The number and size of nuclear verdicts continue to rise, in part because plaintiffs attorneys have become more adept at crafting compelling trial stories — and an analysis of these success stories reveals a 10-part framework for structuring an effective case narrative, says Jonathan Ross at Decision Analysis.

  • Series

    Round-Canopy Parachuting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Similar to the practice of law, jumping from an in-flight airplane with nothing but training and a few yards of parachute silk is a demanding and stressful endeavor, and the experience has bolstered my legal practice by enhancing my focus, teamwork skills and sense of perspective, says Thomas Salerno at Stinson.

  • And Now A Word From The Panel: The MDL Map

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    An intriguing yet unpredictable facet of multidistrict litigation practice is venue selection for new MDL proceedings, and the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation considers many factors when it assigns an MDL venue, says Alan Rothman at Sidley Austin.

  • Why Now Is The Time For Law Firms To Hire Lateral Partners

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    Partner and associate mobility data from the second quarter of this year suggest that there's never been a better time in recent years for law firms to hire lateral candidates, particularly experienced partners — though this necessitates an understanding of potential red flags, say Julie Henson and Greg Hamman at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

  • Reassessing Lease Provisions To Account For ESG Initiatives

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    As companies seek to build ESG considerations into their businesses, it's crucial to understand how such initiatives can quickly become significant enough to compel reassessment of lease agreement provisions, and how best to modify leases accordingly, say Julian Freeman and Gabe Pitassi at Cox Castle.

  • Considering Possible PR Risks Of Certain Legal Tactics

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    Disney and American Airlines recently abandoned certain litigation tactics in two lawsuits after fierce public backlash, illustrating why corporate counsel should consider the reputational implications of any legal strategy and partner with their communications teams to preempt public relations concerns, says Chris Gidez at G7 Reputation Advisory.

  • Integrating ESG Into Risk Management Programs

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    Amid increasing regulations and reporting requirements for corporate sustainability in the European Union and the U.S., companies might consider how to incorporate environmental, social and governance factors into more formalized risk management, say directors at Alvarez & Marsal.

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