Natural Resources

New York City can’t use tort law to sue oil companies over climate change, 2nd Circuit says

Federal law gives the Environmental Protection Agency, not federal courts, the authority to regulate greenhouse emissions in the United States, a federal appeals court ruled as it tossed a climate change lawsuit Thursday.

Apr 2, 2021 9:34 AM CDT

Law firms have opportunity to join growing cannabis movement

While many practices have suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic, cannabis law is among the few that have actually prospered, Amanda Ostrowitz said during a Wednesday afternoon event at the ABA Techshow 2021.

Mar 10, 2021 4:24 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Execution carried out despite COVID-19 claim; 9 charged in Flint water crisis

COVID-19 claim doesn’t stop execution of drug trafficker Drug trafficker Cory Johnson was executed Thursday for his role in the slayings of seven people after the U.S. Supreme Court refused a delay request. Johnson’s lawyers had contended that he was intellectually disabled, and he was barred from execution. They also…

Jan 15, 2021 4:31 PM CST

Oregon Supreme Court rejects climate change lawsuit that cites public trust doctrine

The Oregon Supreme Court has rejected claims that the public trust doctrine imposes broad duties on the state to protect the environment from greenhouse gas emissions.

Oct 23, 2020 10:39 AM CDT

Michigan agrees to pay $600M to settle Flint water claims; most money allocated to minors

The state of Michigan has agreed to pay $600 million to settle claims by Flint, Michigan, residents and businesses that said they were harmed by lead that leached into the city’s water supply.

Aug 20, 2020 3:45 PM CDT

Lawyer accused of obtaining fraudulent environmental verdict against Chevron is disbarred

Rejecting a referee’s recommendation, a New York appeals court has disbarred an environmental lawyer for obtaining a fraudulent $8.6 billion judgment against Chevron in Ecuador.

Aug 14, 2020 10:56 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Trump sued over census policy excluding immigrants; judge swears in 37 new US citizens

Trump faces federal lawsuit over new policy of excluding immigrants from 2020 census The city of Atlanta, several nonprofit organizations and naturalized citizens sued President Donald Trump on Thursday over his plan to exclude undocumented immigrants in the 2020 census reporting used to calculate states’ seats in the U.S. House…

Jul 24, 2020 4:27 PM CDT

7 ways lawyers can join the fight to curb climate change

There are two paths lawyers can take in response to the crisis. We can mutter, “We’re screwed,” and go back to practicing law and living high-carbon lifestyles. Or we can devote time and resources to help ensure a livable future, says lawyer Matthew Metz.

Feb 27, 2020 10:50 AM CST

9 major climate change cases that could shape the fight to save the planet

Climate change, which has surfaced as a major issue in the 2020 presidential election, is a growing practice area in environmental litigation. Everyone involved (even the U.S. government, which has been named in several cases), concurs that the climate crisis poses a dire and increasing threat to a safe environment.…

Jan 23, 2020 2:49 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: SCOTUS won’t review abortion ultrasound law; 9th Circuit edits its Taylor Swift decision

Supreme Court won’t review Kentucky abortion law requiring ultrasounds The U.S. Supreme Court refused Monday to hear a challenge to a Kentucky law requiring doctors to display fetal ultrasounds and describe the images to women who request abortions. Doctors who challenged the law claimed that it violated their First Amendment…

Dec 9, 2019 4:36 PM CST

State supreme court sides with farmer over pig manure plan

A divided Pennsylvania Supreme Court decided Thursday that a farmer did not have to obey his township’s regulations when managing manure on his hog farm.

Sep 27, 2019 10:39 AM CDT

Making the global case for climate rule of law

In early 2017, after two years as deputy director of the ABA Rule of Law Initiative’s Beijing, China, office and four years managing ROLI’s programs in China, I relocated to ROLI’s Washington, D.C.-based headquarters to expand its global environmental rule of law programs. One such program I have had the…

Sep 5, 2019 4:41 PM CDT

All charges dropped in Flint water case with promise of continuing investigation

Prosecutors in Michigan have dropped all pending criminal charges against officials accused in connection with the leaching of lead into the water supply in Flint. Prosecutors said they dropped the charges against eight defendants because of problems with the investigation under the previous attorney general, Bill Schuette, report the Detroit…

Jun 14, 2019 10:26 AM CDT

Fracking companies lost on trespassing, but a court just gave them a different win

A week after the West Virginia Supreme Court unanimously upheld the property rights of landowners battling one natural gas giant, the same court tossed out a challenge filed by another group of landowners against a different natural gas company.

Jun 13, 2019 11:10 AM CDT

Supreme Court rules for Alaska moose hunter, says he can ‘rev up his hovercraft’ again

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the National Park Service did not have the authority to ban use of hovercrafts on Alaska’s Nation River. The high court ruled on behalf of moose hunter John Sturgeon, who piloted his hovercraft across the river in a national preserve to reach his…

Mar 26, 2019 2:35 PM CDT