On July 5, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, in Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility v. Hopper, Acting Director of the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, reviewed the District Court’s dismissal of a lawsuit alleging that the Government’s approval of a Cape Cod offshore wind energy…
On July 5, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an important ruling interpreting the reach of the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in the case of Competitive Enterprise Institute v. Office of Science and Technology Policy. The Office is located in the Executive…
This decision is reminiscent of a fairytale about a princess and her frog prince and the croaking chorus of the Frogs of Aristophane. On June 30, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a significant ruling involving critical habitat designations on private land. The case was decided…
Two recently issued decisions are important because they clarify how the formidably complex legal structure affecting a growing American business—the export of liquefied natural gas (LNG) –will be interpreted by the one federal Court of Appeals that has singular expertise in interpreting such requirements. On June 28, the U.S. Court of Appeals…
A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is a reminder to important federal agencies that they must take care to adhere to the requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) when they issue not only new rules, but also other regulatory documents as well, and…
Today, my colleague Norman Carlin published an interesting piece discussing a pair of recent decision issued by the Fourth District Court of Appeal upholding a public-private partnership (P3) water project against two California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) challenges. The two decisions are Delaware Tetra Technologies, Inc. v. County of San Bernardino, 247 Cal. App.…
Recently there have been some interesting developments in environmental and regulatory law, including litigation, administrative and regulatory actions, and legislation. I’ve provided you with a little lite reading to ease into your week: Litigation The Supreme Court will review a U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit decision, in NLRB…
In Texas Extends ‘Accommodation Doctrine’ To Groundwater, I provide a broader analysis of the issue presented in my earlier blog When Contract is Silent, Accommodation Doctrine Applies to Water Rights Disputes. Pillsbury summer associate Brittney Sandler made significant contributions to this article. Sandler is currently enrolled at Georgetown University Law Center where…
On June 20, 2016, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California held, in Center for Environmental Health, et. al. v. Vilsack, that a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) guidance document, intended to provide guidance with respect to the Organic Foods Act, was a legislative rule, not merely an…
Chevron deference was an important factor in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s 180-page ruling, in United States Telecom Assoc. v. FCC, et al., on June 14 (Flag Day), upholding the Federal Communications Commission’s “Open Internet” rule. The Court of Appeals’ notes that “[f]or the third time in seven years, we confront an…