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Environmental
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June 24, 2025
Wash. Judge Blocks Trump Admin's EV Charging Funds Freeze
A Seattle federal judge Tuesday issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from withholding funds for electric vehicle charging infrastructure projects in 14 states, but stopped short of applying it to two other states and Washington, D.C., and stayed the order to give the administration time to appeal.
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June 24, 2025
State AGs Sue Trump Admin To Stop Billions In Grant Cuts
A coalition of 21 states and the District of Columbia filed suit Tuesday in Massachusetts federal court, accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully using a single clause "buried in federal regulations" to nix billions of dollars in federal grant funding to the states.
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June 24, 2025
5th Circ. Says EPA Ignored Cos. To Push Efficiency Testing Rule
The Fifth Circuit has thrown out part of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule for determining measures for fuel efficiency, finding Tuesday that the agency used a faulty methodology to justify tightening standards and outright ignored comments when creating the rule.
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June 24, 2025
NC Senate Backs $700M Boost For Hurricane Helene Recovery
The North Carolina Senate has signed off on a proposal to allocate another $700 million to the state's Hurricane Helene Disaster Recovery Fund, including $75 million for road and bridge repairs and $70 million to meet Federal Emergency Management Agency's state matching requirements.
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June 24, 2025
Ohio Derailment Deal Admin Wants Explanation For Ouster
The ex-administrator of Norfolk Southern's $600 million settlement with the people and businesses of East Palestine, Ohio, is asking a federal court to share why it was terminated, saying in filings Monday that the company had no idea the plaintiffs' counsel were going to ask for a new administrator.
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June 24, 2025
Green Group Sues Forest Service Over NH Logging Project
A green group on Monday asked a New Hampshire federal court to strike down the U.S. Forest Service's approval of a White Mountain National Forest logging project that the group said didn't get the proper environmental review.
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June 24, 2025
Alaska Must Challenge Tribe's Gaming Hall In Home State
The state of Alaska must challenge federal approval for an Alaska Native tribe's gaming hall on its home turf and not in Washington, D.C., a D.C. federal judge ruled.
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June 24, 2025
Pollution Exclusion Applies Without Exception, AIG Unit Says
An AIG unit urged the Illinois Supreme Court to find that a permit or regulation allowing a company to discharge toxins into the environment has no bearing on the application of a pollution exclusion, saying "pollution is pollution" regardless of government authorization.
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June 24, 2025
Honeywell, DuPont Say Firefighters' PFAS Suit Falls Short
Honeywell, DuPont and other companies on Monday asked a Connecticut federal judge to toss a group of firefighters' lawsuit over alleged exposure to dangerous levels of forever chemicals, saying there's no legal support for the claims.
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June 23, 2025
GOP Plan For Merging Agencies Faces Reckoning, And Alarm
The Senate parliamentarian has given a thumbs-down to a Republican budget proposal that would allow President Donald Trump to unilaterally eliminate agencies through mergers and consolidation, adding to what experts say are a host of problems with the little-noticed provision.
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June 23, 2025
Trump Admin Rescinds Clinton-Era 'Roadless' Logging Rule
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced Monday that she was rescinding the longstanding "Roadless Rule" limiting the number of roads built in national forests, calling the 2001 rule "outdated," contrary to the "will of Congress" and an obstacle to "common sense management of our natural resources."
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June 23, 2025
Monsanto Settles With Families After 11th Seattle PCB Trial
Monsanto settled a tort case on Monday brought by 22 people who claim that they were poisoned by chemicals known as PCBs at a Washington school, ending jury deliberations following a nine-week trial in state court.
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June 23, 2025
Permit Delays Out Of Hand, Telecom Biz Tells Interior Dept.
Telecom providers are still having a tough time getting federal permits approved for broadband projects, with the Bureau of Land Management causing severe delays, the industry's main trade group told the U.S. Department of the Interior.
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June 23, 2025
Green Groups Urge DOI To Force Companies To Plug Wells
Conservation groups on Monday urged the Trump administration to block oil and gas companies with unplugged wells and inactive platforms from securing new offshore drilling rights, accusing the government of letting the companies use the ocean as their junkyard.
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June 23, 2025
NY Tribe Says Feds Ignore Public Health In Sanitation Fight
The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe has asked a New York federal court to order the Indian Health Service to turn over its authority to maintain sanitation facilities to the tribe, arguing that part of the IHS's public health mission is to ensure clean water and functioning sewage systems.
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June 23, 2025
Apache Nonprofit Asks Justices For Rehearing In Mining Row
An Apache nonprofit is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider a decision to deny its petition that looked to block the transfer of nearly 2,500 acres to an Arizona copper mining company, arguing the outcome of a case now before the justices could sway their analysis.
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June 23, 2025
NJ Justices Greenlight Renewed Bid For Roundup Mass Tort
The New Jersey Supreme Court has granted a renewed application for lawsuits against Monsanto Co. and its parent company, Bayer AG, alleging injuries from exposure to the company's weed killer Roundup to be designated as multicounty litigation, according to a Monday notice to the bar.
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June 23, 2025
Kennedys Expands With Litigators In Philly, Midwest
Kennedys Law LLP expanded its litigation team with the recent addition to its offices in Philadelphia and Chicago of four attorneys specializing in liability, insurance and cybersecurity.
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June 23, 2025
Coal Processing Co. Admits To Bypassing Pollution Controls
The now-defunct Erie Coke Corp. has pled guilty to criminal violations of the Clean Air Act at its former lakefront facility, federal prosecutors have announced.
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June 20, 2025
Science Research Funding Cuts Blocked By Mass. Judge
A Massachusetts federal judge Friday prohibited the Trump administration from cutting certain National Science Foundation research funding associated with facilities and administrative costs, ruling that the policy runs afoul of multiple laws and the government hasn't adequately explained its reasoning.
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June 20, 2025
San Antonio Pushes To Repair Park Amid Tribal Dispute
The city of San Antonio has asked the Fifth Circuit to lift a stay on a tribal appeal after the Texas Supreme Court answered a question about a state law addressing religious practices, arguing that the high court's opinion rules out two Native Americans' claims.
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June 20, 2025
EPA Told To Explain Its Crop-Based Fuel Standards
The D.C. Circuit on Friday returned a mixed opinion on challenges from green groups to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2023-2025 renewable fuel standards, upholding the agency's volume-setting process but ruling that its climate change analysis was arbitrary and capricious under the Clean Air Act.
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June 20, 2025
2nd Circ. Backs Chubb's Win In $49M Sandy Coverage Fight
The Second Circuit on Friday cemented a Chubb unit's win in a decade-long dispute over a chocolatier's bid for an additional $49 million in coverage for Superstorm Sandy losses, affirming a decision denying the chocolatier's requests to set aside a jury verdict or hold a new trial.
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June 20, 2025
Ga. County Seeks Extension Of Feds' Sewer Update Deadline
Georgia's DeKalb County has again asked a federal judge for more time to come into compliance with a federal consent decree requiring it to upgrade its sewer systems, arguing that recent assessments of the project have made the decree's timeline "substantially more onerous."
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June 20, 2025
Mich. Says Feds Can't Block AG's Climate Tort Suit
The Trump administration's lawsuit to block Michigan from suing fossil fuel companies for climate harms is based on guesswork about a hypothetical lawsuit and should be dismissed, Michigan argued Friday.
Expert Analysis
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3 Corporate Deposition Prep Tips To Counter 'Reptile' Tactics
With plaintiffs counsel’s rising use of reptile strategies that seek to activate jurors' survival instincts, corporate deponents face an increased risk of being lulled into providing testimony that undercuts a key defense or sets up the plaintiff's case strategy at trial, making it important to consider factors like cross-examination and timing, say attorneys at Dentons.
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Series
Volunteering At Schools Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Speaking to elementary school students about the importance of college and other opportunities after high school — especially students who may not see those paths reflected in their daily lives — not only taught me the importance of giving back, but also helped to sharpen several skills essential to a successful legal practice, says Guillermo Escobedo at Constangy.
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DOE Grant Recipients Facing Termination Have Legal Options
Federal grant recipients whose awards have recently been rescinded by the U.S. Deparment of Energy have options for successfully challenging those terminations through litigation, say attorneys at Bracewell.
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Attacks On Judicial Independence Tend To Manifest In 3 Ways
Attacks on judicial independence now run the gamut from gross (bald-faced interference) to systemic (structural changes) to insidious (efforts to undermine public trust), so lawyers, judges and the public must recognize the fateful moment in which we live and defend the rule of law every day, says Jim Moliterno at Washington and Lee University.
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Statistics Tools Chart A Path For AI Use In Expert Testimony
To avoid the fate of numerous expert witnesses whose testimony was recently deemed inadmissible by courts, experts relying on artificial intelligence and machine learning should learn from statistical tools’ road to judicial acceptance, say directors at Secretariat.
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A Look At Texas Corp. Law Changes Aimed At Dethroning Del.
Seeking to displace Delaware as the preferred locale for incorporation, Texas recently significantly amended its business code, including changes like codifying the business judgment rule, restricting books and records demands, and giving greater protections for officers and directors in interested transactions, say attorneys at Fenwick.
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Justices Hand Agencies Broad Discretion In NEPA Review
By limiting the required scope of reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act, the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County could weaken the review process under NEPA, while also raising questions regarding the degree of deference afforded to agencies, say attorneys at Foley Hoag.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Appreciating Civil Procedure
If you’re like me, law school’s often complex and theoretical approach to teaching civil procedure may have contributed to an early struggle with the topic, but when seen from a practical perspective, new lawyers may find they enjoy mastering these rules, says Chloe Villagomez at Foster Garvey.
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Calif. Bar Exam Fiasco Shows Why Attys Must Disclose AI Use
The recent revelation that a handful of questions from the controversial California bar exam administered in February were drafted using generative artificial intelligence demonstrates the continued importance of disclosure for attorneys who use AI tools, say attorneys at Troutman.
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Justices Widen Gap Between Federal, Calif. Enviro Reviews
While the U.S. Supreme Court's recent opinion in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado, narrowed the scope of National Environmental Policy Act reviews, it may have broadened the gulf between reviews conducted under NEPA and those under the California Environmental Quality Act, say attorneys at Hanson Bridgett.
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In 2nd Place, Va. 'Rocket Docket' Remains Old Reliable
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia was again one of the fastest civil trial courts in the nation last year, and an interview with the court’s newest judge provides insights into why it continues to soar, says Robert Tata at Hunton.
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How Attorneys Can Become Change Agents For Racial Equity
As the administration targets diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and law firms consider pulling back from their programs, lawyers who care about racial equity and justice can employ four strategies to create microspaces of justice, which can then be parlayed into drivers of transformational change, says Susan Sturm at Columbia Law School.
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Seven County Ruling Should Trim Agency Enviro Analysis
The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County provides needed clarity for infrastructure projects by expressly directing agencies to narrow environmental reviews, and reducing the threat of litigation if even tangential issues are not exhaustively evaluated, say attorneys at Dentons.
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Series
Running Marathons Makes Me A Better Lawyer
After almost five years of running marathons, I’ve learned that both the race itself and the training process sharpen skills that directly translate to the practice of law, including discipline, dedication, endurance, problem-solving and mental toughness, says Lauren Meadows at Swift Currie.
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Calif. Air Board Offers Early Hints On Climate Reporting
As initial reporting deadlines for California's new climate reporting laws approach, guidance provided by the California Air Resources Board in a virtual public workshop sheds some light on rulemaking to come, and how to prepare for compliance during this period of uncertainty, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.