Kean Miller is closely following the recent challenges to the Chevron Deference standard established by the Supreme Court in Chevron, U.S.A., Inc. v. Nat. Res. Def. Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837 (1984). As applied by federal courts for the last four decades, the Chevron Deference standard first requires that a court determine whether a statute
The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (known as “OPA 90”) and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (known as “CERCLA”) are two federal environmental laws with significant effects on businesses and individuals across the nation. OPA 90 provides a remedial scheme that apportions the liability and costs of oil spills among responsible parties.
On May 25, 2023, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of landowners seeking to build a modest home on “wetlands” in Sackett v. EPA. This ruling represents not only a clarification of a major law relevant to companies seeking to develop land near water bodies, but also a significant limitation on the EPA’s
The 2023 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature wrapped on June 8, 2023. During this session, the Louisiana Legislature enacted a number of bills in the energy and environmental sector of the law. Below is a brief summary of all new relevant adopted provisions:
Energy
Act 150 (SB 103) changes the name of the Department
On Tuesday, May 16, 2023, the D.C. Circuit denied in part and dismissed in part a petition for review filed by environmental groups, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Sierra Club (collectively, “Petitioners”). Ctr. for Biological Diversity v. FERC, D.C. Cir., No. 20-01379, 5/26/2023. The petition sought a review of the Federal Energy
On May 1, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari to Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo [1] – a D.C. Circuit decision that upheld agency deference under Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council. [2] Chevron has stood for nearly 40 years on the principle that agencies should be armed with the flexibility
The Louisiana Supreme Court answered the question of when general damages are recoverable for mental anguish by tort plaintiffs who suffer no physical injury in Spencer v. Valero Refining Meraux, LLC. In this action which involved the claims of four plaintiffs, an accident, fire, and explosion occurred at the Valero refinery in Meraux, Louisiana
For traditional manufacturers, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) offers a mixed bag of carrots and sticks to support its green energy goals.
Signed by President Biden on Aug. 16, 2022, the bill includes numerous tax credits and other incentives promoting clean energy investment. One of the IRA’s stated purposes is to incentivize and
In August of 2020, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards issued an executive order establishing emission reduction goals of reaching net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050, putting the state in line with pledges made under the Paris Agreement, and by the federal government, 25 other states, and hundreds of companies in the private sector.
In support of the Biden administration’s goal of permitting 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (“BOEM”) announced that it has been begun preparing its draft environmental assessment to evaluate the potential impacts of offshore wind development in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico.
The area to be