The Oregon legislature passed, as part of its February 2022 session, three bills that form a comprehensive set of changes to the Oregon Forest Practices Act (Senate Bill 1501), create a small forestland owner tax credit...more
The Oregon legislature is currently considering, as part of its February 2022 session, three bills that form a comprehensive set of changes to the Oregon Forest Practices Act (Senate Bill 1501), create a small forestland...more
The Oregon Supreme Court recently reversed a decision of the Oregon Court of Appeals and determined that the lease of a vested hydroelectric water right to the state for instream uses did not qualify as the “use of water...more
On November 12, 2020, the Washington Supreme Court extended corporate attorney-client privilege protection to appropriate ex parte communications between defendant hospitals and their non-employee agents. The court’s decision...more
12/4/2020
/ Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Corporate Privilege ,
Ex Parte ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hospitals ,
Medical Malpractice ,
Medical Negligence ,
Non-Employees ,
Patients ,
Physician-Patient Confidentiality ,
Physicians ,
State and Local Government ,
WA Supreme Court
Following years of discussion, administrative rulemaking, and multi-state litigation, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and Army Corps of Engineers (“ACOE”) have published a new regulatory definition of waters of...more
Under Oregon Revised Statute (ORS) 543A.305, a “water right associated with [a] hydroelectric project” converts to a permanent in-stream water right “[f]ive years after the use of water under [the] hydroelectric water right...more
Following years of discussion, administrative rulemaking, and multi-state litigation, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and Army Corps of Engineers (“ACOE”) have published a new regulatory definition of waters of...more
On April 23, the United States Supreme Court held that discharges to groundwater may require a permit under the Clean Water Act if they are the “functional equivalent” of discharges directly to navigable waters. This ruling...more
4/28/2020
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Direct Discharge ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Functional Equivalent ,
Groundwater ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Navigable Waters ,
Permits ,
Point Sources ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Vacated ,
Waters of the United States
COVID-19 has caused governments to take unprecedented action. Last week saw the passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, a sweeping bipartisan bill that aims to prop up families and businesses by...more
In Brooks v. Byler et al., Marion County Circuit Court Case No. 19CV27798, the Marion County Circuit Court rebuked the Oregon Water Resources Department’s (OWRD) attempt to regulate groundwater users based on OWRD’s blanket...more
The disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has upended nearly every segment of the economy and government, including environmental compliance and regulation. As a result, state and federal regulatory agencies are...more
3/28/2020
/ Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Inspections ,
Office Closures ,
Permits ,
Public Health Emergency ,
State Agencies
The Supreme Court has handed down one of the most anticipated Endangered Species Act (ESA) rulings in recent years. In Weyerhaeuser Co. v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serv., the Supreme Court unanimously overruled the Fifth...more
At its February 9, 2018 meeting, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission (the “Commission”) voted to “uplist” the marbled murrelet’s status from a threatened to an endangered species by a 4-2 margin. The marbled murrelet is a...more