DC Circ. Urged To Scrap EPA Mercury Rule For Coal Plants

By Tom Lotshaw

States and industry groups fighting a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule curbing mercury and other toxic metal emissions at some coal-fired power plants told the D.C. Circuit it would impose exorbitant and unjustifiable costs for no public health benefit, and is actually aimed at forcing plants to retire to advance climate goals.

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Former C-Quest Capital CEO Indicted For Carbon Credit Fraud

By Rae Ann Varona

Federal prosecutors in New York on Wednesday announced criminal charges against Kenneth Newcombe, the former chief executive officer of carbon project developer C-Quest Capital, accusing him of scheming to submit altered data relating to cookstove projects abroad to obtain millions of dollars worth of carbon credits.

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Judge Nixes Alta Mesa Trustee's Clawback Suit

By Hilary Russ

A Texas bankruptcy judge has ended efforts by the litigation trustee for defunct oil and gas company Alta Mesa Resources Inc. to claw back money from its predecessor's shareholders, finding that they did not directly benefit from contracts that boosted the value of the company before it was later taken public in a reverse merger.

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Quinn Emanuel Can't Ignore Past Oro Negro Ties, Oil Co. Says

By David Minsky

Oro Negro Drilling Pte. Ltd. said former counsel Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP must produce confidential information in a discovery bid to disqualify its attorneys in Mexican proceedings.

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Houston Firm Says DQ Bid Is Attempt To Duck MDL Penalties

By Catherine Marfin

Ahmad Zavitsanos & Mensing PLLC hit back Wednesday at Arnold & Itkin LLP's bid to disqualify it from Hurricane Zeta litigation, saying Arnold & Itkin's claim that a former law clerk took information for the defense team is an "illegitimate attempt" to "avoid legitimate merits discovery that goes to the heart of the case."

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Madigan Can't Duck Bribery Claims After High Court Ruling

By Celeste Bott

An Illinois federal judge on Wednesday declined to dismiss bribery charges against former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling limiting the reach of a bribery statute that once criminalized gratuities, while also refusing to sever his case from his co-defendant's.

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Justices Asked To Short-Circuit Mass. Offshore Wind Project

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

Massachusetts residents are telling the U.S. Supreme Court it's the last hope for endangered North Atlantic right whales that were overlooked when the federal government approved a large offshore wind energy project in the waters off of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

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Enviro Groups Seek To Defend EPA's Veto Of Pebble Mine

By Madeline Lyskawa

A slew of environmental groups have called on an Alaska federal judge to let them defend the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to block a plan to build the controversial Pebble Mine, saying they want to protect the Bristol Bay headwaters from the mine's "devastating and unavoidable adverse impacts."

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EPA Settles Suit Over Washington Aquatic Cyanide Rules

By Ali Sullivan

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency agreed to evaluate Washington state's water quality standards for cyanide pollution, resolving a lawsuit that accused the agency of maintaining lax standards that threaten wildlife.

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U.S. Steel Must Face Testing Suit Over Long-Gone Zinc Plant

By Matthew Santoni

U.S. Steel can't escape a lawsuit from neighbors of a long-closed zinc refinery outside Pittsburgh seeking to make the company pay for long-term environmental testing, a Pennsylvania appellate panel ruled Tuesday, reasoning that the plaintiffs properly invoked a state law governing the cleanup of hazardous pollution.

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BRG Hires Alvarez & Marsal Arbitration Pro In Houston

By Joyce Hanson

Global consulting firm Berkeley Research Group said Wednesday it has added an arbitration expert from consultant Alvarez & Marsal Holdings LLC to its international arbitration and cross-border disputes offerings, as well as its energy and climate practice.

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Reed Smith Enviro Ace Remembered As Kind Mentor

By James Mills

Todd Maiden, a longtime environmental attorney in Reed Smith LLP's San Francisco office who died last month, was deeply passionate about preserving the environment and enjoyed mentoring young associates. He leaves behind a legacy as the "kindest and gentlest of souls," his former colleagues said.

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Secret Service Failures Offer Lessons For Private Sector GCs

The Secret Service’s problematic response to two assassination attempts against former President Donald Trump this summer provides a crash course for general counsel on how not to handle crisis communications, says Keith Nahigian at Nahigian Strategies.

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These Are The Legal Chiefs Who Command Top Dollar

By Michele Gorman

With the increasingly dynamic role of the top corporate lawyer playing out across sectors — as well as stock awards that far outpace the amounts they see in their salaries and bonuses — the pay packages for most general counsel and chief legal officers continue to stay strong.

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The 2024 Compensation Report: General Counsel

Law360 Pulse looks at the pay of the best-compensated legal chiefs at S&P 500 companies. Find out who’s making the most and which law firms and schools have the most alumni in these high-profile posts.

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SEC's Top Cop Departing After Record-Breaking Tenure

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Wednesday that enforcement director Gurbir Grewal will be leaving the agency next week following a three-year tenure, during which the agency brought in record penalties and frequently clashed with crypto industry participants objecting to a string of lawsuits brought under Grewal's leadership.

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NYC Mayor Adams May Face More Charges, Feds Say

By Frank G. Runyeon

Prosecutors told a Manhattan federal judge Wednesday it was "possible" they would charge New York City Mayor Eric Adams with additional crimes in his corruption case, indicating they have evidence he told witnesses to lie to the FBI.

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Bullying In Law Is Pervasive, Drives Turnover, Ill. Attys Say

By Aebra Coe

Nearly a quarter of those who responded to a recent large-scale survey of Illinois lawyers said they had been bullied at work within the last year, with those numbers spiking among women and other traditionally underrepresented attorneys in the profession, a report released Tuesday found.

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Ex-Federal Judge's Sex Misconduct Spurs New Criminal Trial

By Ryan Boysen

The sexual misconduct scandal that toppled a federal judge in Alaska has now caused a criminal conviction to be overturned, despite prosecutors' insistence that the judge's "out-of-court judicial misconduct" had no effect on the trial.

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Progressive Group Staffs Up For Judicial Nominee Fights

By Courtney Bublé

With a little over a month until Election Day, a progressive organization announced a slate of new hires to prepare for judicial confirmation battles and fight for court reform on Wednesday.

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Maine's First Female Federal Judge To Take Semiretired Status

By Courtney Bublé

U.S District Judge Nancy Torresen, the first woman to hold a federal judgeship in Maine, will take semiretired status next year.

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Cahill Adds House Oversight Atty Who Handled Biden Probe

By Rachel Scharf

Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP announced Wednesday it hired the former head lawyer for the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, whose work includes guiding an impeachment probe into President Joe Biden.

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Kirkland Accuses Ex-IP Atty Of Delaying Bias Suit Discovery

By Dorothy Atkins

Kirkland & Ellis LLP told a California federal magistrate judge Wednesday that a former Kirkland intellectual property associate has delayed discovery production in her discrimination lawsuit against the firm, arguing that her discovery responses cite an erroneous legal standard, are non-committal and are "not even close to being proper."

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Q&A

Fried Frank's M&A Co-Head Views Rate Cuts, AI With Caution

By Al Barbarino

While it might be tempting to jump with joy about the Federal Reserve's recent rate cut, Philip Richter, co-head of Fried Frank's mergers and acquisitions practice, takes a more measured view. Here, Law360 talks to Richter about the rate cut, the upcoming presidential election, artificial intelligence and more.

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Tenn. Atty Sues Federal Court, Judges Over Gag Order Rule

By Jack Karp

A rule of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee barring attorneys from making "any extrajudicial statements" about cases pending in the district violates the First Amendment and should be blocked, according to a Nashville civil rights lawyer.

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MSU Halted Paying Legal Bills After Critical Report, Firm Says

By Danielle Ferguson

Michigan State University stopped paying outside counsel to defend its board of trustees chair after an investigative report appeared to support claims the chair bullied colleagues, the counsel said, filing a state complaint seeking two months' worth of fees.

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