Environmental Law

EPA chief announces rule to repeal Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan

Environmental Protection Agency administrator Scott Pruitt announced Monday that he will repeal the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan through a proposed rule that will be published in the Federal Register. Pruitt told coal miners that “the war on coal is over” and he will begin efforts to withdraw the Clean…

Oct 10, 2017 12:18 PM CDT

Balch & Bingham partners are accused of bribing former state lawmaker to oppose Superfund plan

Two environmental partners with Balch & Bingham have been accused of bribing a former Alabama state lawmaker to oppose a Superfund priority cleanup of property linked to their corporate client. Partners Steven McKinney and Joel Gilbert are accused in a federal indictment along with Drummond Co. vice president David Roberson,…

Sep 29, 2017 10:47 AM CDT

California sues to stop construction of Trump’s border wall

California filed a lawsuit on Wednesday to stop construction of the border wall advocated by President Donald Trump as a key campaign promise. The suit claims the administration did not abide by laws requiring an environmental impact review and is acting without statutory authorization, report the Washington Post and the…

Sep 21, 2017 9:38 AM CDT

Who is responsible for hurricane damage? Suits could be based on climate-change science

Pioneering lawsuits based on climate-change science could blame hurricane damage on municipal planners, architects and engineers who failed to plan for foreseeable damages, some lawyers say.

Sep 7, 2017 7:40 AM CDT

Flint and pipeline cases become ‘harbingers of conflict in the future’ of water

Civil rights lawyer Daniel Sheehan wasn’t even listed as a speaker for a water-rights program at the ABA Annual Meeting on Sunday, but he managed to get a round of applause when he called for removal of President Donald Trump and the election of a progressive president. Filling in for…

Aug 13, 2017 4:37 PM CDT

American attorneys partner to save endangered African wildlife

Working with a public interest law firm in Namibia and the ABA Section of State and Local Government Law, American attorneys set out to improve the country’s wildlife laws—and strengthen their enforcement—with the aim of saving more Namibian animals.

Jul 1, 2017 12:50 AM CDT

In Flint water crisis, could involuntary manslaughter charges actually lead to prison time?

Last week, Michigan’s top prosecutor announced that five officials, including the state’s Health Department head Nick Lyon, will face charges of involuntary manslaughter for a death resulting from the Flint water crisis. It’s a move virtually unheard of in modern American history; legal experts couldn’t point to a single case…

Jun 19, 2017 2:38 PM CDT

Five Michigan officials charged with involuntary manslaughter in Flint water debacle

The leader of Michigan’s health department and four other state water officials have been charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of an 85-year-old man who succumbed to Legionnaires’ disease in an outbreak that prosecutors are linking to Flint’s water supply. The highest-ranking official charged on Wednesday is Nick Lyon,…

Jun 14, 2017 10:36 AM CDT

Lieberman withdraws from FBI director search, cites potential conflict with Kasowitz hire

Joseph Lieberman has withdrawn his name from consideration for FBI director because of the potential conflict of interest caused by President Donald Trump’s hiring of another lawyer from his law firm. Lieberman, a former U.S. senator from Connecticut, said in a letter to the president that he wanted to avoid…

May 25, 2017 4:02 PM CDT

Federal judge approves $97M settlement to replace lead water pipes in Flint

A federal judge on Tuesday approved a settlement in which the state of Michigan will disburse up to $97 million to replace lead water pipes in Flint. U.S. District Judge David Lawson found that the settlement is fair, adequate and reasonable on the same day that he held a hearing…

Mar 29, 2017 10:55 AM CDT

Trump signs executive order rolling back climate change policy; next move is before DC Circuit

President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order that directs the Environmental Protection Agency to begin rescinding and rewriting the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan, designed to fight global warming by curbing carbon emissions. Trump characterized his order as a way to restore jobs in the coal industry, the…

Mar 28, 2017 2:16 PM CDT

Federal judge denies injunction, permitting Dakota Access Pipeline to go forward

A Washington, D.C. federal court ruling Tuesday paves the way for completion of the Dakota Access Pipeline, over strong objections from neighboring tribal communities, Reuters has reported. The ruling by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg rejected a request for an injunction from the Cheyenne River Sioux and Standing Rock Sioux…

Mar 7, 2017 2:45 PM CST

Class action filed on behalf of Flint residents claims EPA negligence in water probe

A class action lawsuit filed on behalf of 1,700 residents and property owners in Flint, Michigan, claims the Environmental Protection Agency mishandled the Flint water crisis. The negligence suit seeks more than $700 million in damages, report MLive.com, Courthouse News Service and the Detroit News. Name plaintiff Jan Burgess says…

Jan 31, 2017 2:02 PM CST

Trump signs executive order requiring agencies to cut two regulations for every new one proposed

President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order requiring executive departments and agencies to cut at least two regulations for each new one introduced. The order sets an annual cap on the cost of new regulations, and requires that the cost of new regulations in fiscal 2017 be offset…

Jan 31, 2017 10:56 AM CST

EPA accuses Fiat Chrysler of secretly using software that allowed higher diesel emissions

A day after Volkswagen agreed to pay $4.3 billion in penalties for using software to cheat on emissions tests, another automaker is being accused of secretly using software that allowed excess smog-producing emissions. The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday issued a notice of rule violation (PDF) to Fiat Chrysler for…

Jan 12, 2017 11:59 AM CST