The California Air Resources Board (CARB) released a preliminary list of companies it believes may be subject to the state’s new climate disclosure regime, which imposes significant disclosure duties on large United States...more
Coalitions of Republican-led states, industry associations led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and, most recently, the U.S. Department of Justice are testing “climate superfund” laws that aim to recover billions from carbon...more
This post reviews the U.S. Supreme Court’s significant regulatory and administrative law decisions from the Court’s 2024 Term and previews cases on the docket for Fall 2025. ...more
9/8/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chevron Deference ,
Citizen Suits ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hobbs Act ,
Infrastructure ,
Injunctions ,
Judicial Review ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Popular ,
San Francisco ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump v CASA
Enacted earlier this year and scheduled to take effect September 1, SB 2337 would impose new disclosure obligations on proxy advisory firms issuing recommendations regarding Texas-based public companies, including a...more
9/4/2025
/ Contracts Clause ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Due Process ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
First Amendment ,
Glass Lewis ,
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Proxy Advisors ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
State and Local Government ,
Texas
New laws take effect January 1 while regulated entities still await implementing regulations from California Air Resources Board....more
8/29/2025
/ California ,
CARB ,
Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
New Legislation ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process
On July 22, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (D.C.) Circuit granted a motion by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lift the abeyance in consolidated litigation challenging the agency’s...more
8/6/2025
/ Appeals ,
CERCLA ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Stays ,
Trump Administration
The Opinion interprets member states’ responsibilities under treaty and customary international law. In a sweeping and landmark declaration, the Opinion advises that member states have a duty to reduce emissions, regulate...more
On June 27, 2025, the Texas Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Cactus Water Services, LLC v. COG Operating, LLC, No. 23-0676, resolving a high-stakes dispute over the ownership of produced water—a vexing...more
On June 9, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed granting the State of Texas primary enforcement authority—commonly referred to as “primacy”—over the permitting and regulation of Class VI underground...more
6/13/2025
/ Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Drinking Water ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Permits ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Safe Drinking Water Act ,
State and Local Government ,
Texas ,
Underground Injection Wells
On June 5, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit granted the EPA’s third request to continue holding in abeyance consolidated litigation challenging the agency’s national drinking water regulation for six per-...more
After years of contractual entanglements, public disputes and strategic reinvention, Taylor Swift has achieved something few global recording artists have: She now owns the master recordings of her entire musical catalog....more
6/6/2025
/ Acquisitions ,
Artists ,
Breach of Contract ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Music Industry ,
Private Equity ,
Taylor Swift
In a highly anticipated decision for project developers and permitting agencies, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the D.C. Circuit’s 2023 decision that had invalidated federal approval of the Uinta Basin Railway. In Seven...more
6/4/2025
/ Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Judicial Review ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Railways ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SCOTUS
In a closely watched opinion issued on May 16, 2025, the Texas Supreme Court in Myers-Woodward, LLC v. Undergrounds Services Markham, LLC, — S.W.3d —, No. 22-0878, 2025 WL 1415892 (Tex. May 16, 2025) resolved a long-uncertain...more
On May 12, 2025, EPA announced that it will again revise the reporting timeline for manufacturers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under Section 8(a)(7) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The data...more
Even as the Trump administration moves to block state and local climate liability efforts, states and municipalities continue to advance lawsuits seeking to hold fossil fuel companies liable for harms associated with climate...more
5/15/2025
/ Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenwashing ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
While the Trump administration’s PFAS policy framework is beginning to take shape, uncertainties remain across the regulatory, litigation and legislative fronts. On April 28, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced a set of...more
As the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) steps back from defending its March 2024 Climate Disclosure Rule, companies face growing uncertainty in navigating an increasingly fragmented and uncertain landscape of state...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a series of federal lawsuits against four states—New York, Vermont, Michigan and Hawaii—alleging that recent legislative and enforcement efforts to hold fossil fuel companies...more
5/9/2025
/ Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Commerce Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
Continuing with the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda, the White House issued a Presidential Memorandum on April 9 titled Directing the Appeal of Unlawful Regulations. It instructs executive agencies to repeal...more
On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14260, Protecting American Energy From State Overreach. Framed as part of the Administration’s broader strategy of unleashing American energy, the Order directs...more
4/18/2025
/ Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Natural Resources ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
On April 10, 2025, at the request of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit extended the stay by 30 days in American Water Works Association, et al. v. EPA,...more
House Republicans have introduced a joint resolution under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to nullify a rule issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) late in the prior administration. The rule narrowed the...more
States are increasingly turning to “Climate Superfund” laws as a potential mechanism to offset the growing costs of climate-related disaster recovery and the construction of more climate change-resilient infrastructure. These...more
4/8/2025
/ Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Corporate Liability ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Oil & Gas ,
Preemption ,
State and Local Government ,
Superfund
In what it called “the greatest and most consequential day of deregulation in U.S. history,” the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced its most expansive deregulatory initiative to date on March 12, 2025. Through a...more
4/7/2025
/ Air Pollution ,
Automotive Industry ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CERCLA ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Deregulation ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Oil & Gas ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Reform
Maryland has filed suit against W.L. Gore & Associates (Gore), a downstream user of PFAS-containing materials, alleging that its manufacturing processes contributed to PFAS contamination through its use of...more
3/14/2025
/ CERCLA ,
Consumer Product Companies ,
Contamination ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Manufacturers ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Toxic Chemicals