Environmental Law Advisor

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued its inaugural report highlighting recent activities related to the incorporation of environmental justice (EJ) principles into its enforcement efforts.

The US Supreme Court has announced it will evaluate whether “impact fees” associated with permits can violate the Fifth Amendment to the US Constitution.

Sometimes where to begin is the hardest part. The US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recently released Toolkit is intended to help local and state governments start their environmental justice (EJ) journey through community engagement.

On September 28, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) posted a final rule that will require any entity that has manufactured or imported per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in any year since 2011 to report detailed information on PFAS usage.

While increased enforcement resulting from increased federal focus on environmental justice (EJ) issues poses risk to many businesses, how the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assesses and addresses EJ-related “cumulative risk” issues has the potential to create even more uncertainty.

“Joint and several” liability for environmental remediation costs is fundamental to the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA).

Louisiana has been at the center of the Biden Administration’s prioritization of environmental justice (EJ) issues.

More so than any other issue, environmental justice (EJ) remains a central pillar of the Biden Administration’s regulatory agenda. Below, we’ll answer three EJ-related questions that the regulated community may struggle with this fall.

One might not expect that a climate-change case filed by a group of children could succeed.

The “Major Questions Doctrine” (MQD) has been the breakout star of the last two terms at the US Supreme Court.

The energy transition and increased public focus on environmental issues have strained the existing regulatory regime including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA directs agencies to conduct environmental assessments before taking “major federal actions.”

On July 21, 2023, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a long-awaited final rule that will make it difficult for sources to continue to rely on an “emergency” to avoid liability for permit violations under Title V of the Clean Air Act.

Effective and meaningful public engagement are “foundational principles of Federal regulatory development” and the Biden Administration has sought to remove barriers to public participation in the regulatory process.

The Biden Administration is in the process of revising a cog fundamental to federal policymaking. The cog, a guidance document issued by the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) entitled Circular A-4, has the potential to dramatically alter the regulatory environment.

The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards have joined the climate-disclosure reporting frameworks that take a financial materiality-led approach.

This US Supreme Court’s administrative and environmental decisions were somewhat predictable for much of the 2022-2023 term. And then they weren’t – the final weeks of the term especially featured some high-drama decisions.

Last week, the US Supreme Court ruled that the Biden Administration’s efforts to cancel $430 billion in student loan balances was legally unsupportable.

In the United States, environmental and public health measures often correlate to variables like education, income, and a community’s racial makeup.

A DC Circuit decision related to the US Environmental Protection Agency’ (EPA) hydroflurocarbons (HFC) phase out illustrates that federal regulations face significant scrutiny when reviewed in court even where the regulations have a textual hook and are largely consistent with prior agency practice.

A group of Delta Air Lines’ customers filed a class action suit alleging that the airline’s marketing claims of carbon neutrality are false and misleading. While this may be the first greenwashing case filed against a major airline, it is not the first carbon-focused greenwashing action.

The US Environmental Protection Agency defines “environmental justice” as “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and polici

Already among the most widely used battery chemistry, lithium-Ion (Li-Ion) batteries are experiencing a rapid increase in use and demand.

Addressing environmental justice (EJ) issues has been a primary concern for the Biden Administration. Recent developments — one in Chicago and one in Louisiana — show different ways local and state regulators have reacted to federal EJ efforts.

In a closely watched environmental Clean Water Act (CWA) case, the US Supreme Court adopted a far narrower construction of CWA’s definition of “waters of the United States,” functionally shifting significant authority over water-related issues from the federal government to the states.

Federalism — the allocation between federal and state governments — is at the heart of American constitutional law.