To help with your writing efforts, here’s what people are looking for in Environmental & Energy Law online. Trending topics culled from JD Supra, search analytics, social media conversations, and other sources:
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A $745 million verdict against Chevron over damage to Louisiana’s coastal lands; factors contributing to the dollar size of the verdict; what this case may illustrate regarding the reach of successor liability, especially in a case claiming environmental damage; how this case compares to other litigation over energy companies’ alleged damage to wetlands.
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Recurring suggestions (in assorted academic and legal contexts) that fossil fuel companies be charged with homicide in connection with deaths linked to the impacts of climate change. How realistic are such suggestions? What would be the key challenges in bringing charges of this type and pursuing them to any kind of meaningful outcome? What precedence is there for such a course of action?
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Recent or otherwise noteworthy developments involving tribal interests and their intersection with energy or environmental issues (in the state or country of your choice). Take your pick of any of the following: significant lawsuits, settlements, legislation, or enforcement actions; how the second Trump administration’s environmental and energy policies stand to affect tribal communities; any other emerging or heightened points of concern or keen interest.
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A March 20 executive order issued by President Trump regarding mineral production; what the executive order aims to accomplish; national and international trends involving supplies of, and demand for, critical minerals; the most pressing issues involving critical minerals; Trump’s citing of emergency powers in connection with mineral production; what to know about emergency powers and how they may be used; whether the Trump White House’s repeated use of emergency powers (whether in regards to energy and environmental issues, or more broadly speaking) differs markedly from prior administrations, either recently or in the longer-range historical context.
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The European Union’s Clean Industrial Deal; the plan’s origins and status; what stands out to you about the key objectives of the Clean Industrial Deal, the challenges ahead, and potential impacts on the energy sector and beyond.
Related information:
https://commission.europa.eu/topics/eu-competitiveness/clean-industrial-deal_en
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The Trump administration’s decision to open more public land to drilling and mining activities; status of this effort; geographic areas at issue; how much of a shift this represents from actions under the Biden administration or the first Trump administration; implications for the energy industry, the tourism industry, tribal entities, and others; potential legal challenges to this Trump administration policy.
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A jury verdict of more than $660 million against environmental organization Greenpeace; background to this case; basis for holding Greenpeace responsible for impacts of protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline; factors that may have contributed to the size of the damages verdict; what this verdict could mean for future energy projects, environmental protests, litigation strategies, or for the environmental movement overall.
Related information:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/greenpeace-energy-transfer-lawsuit-verdict
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The status of oil and gas leases in Alaska; related actions taken by the Biden administration, and how policies are shifting with the arrival of the second Trump administration; noteworthy actions by the courts or the Department of Interior; what else the energy industry, environmental organizations, local communities, or other interested parties should know.
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Recent or otherwise noteworthy rulings (In the United States or elsewhere) involving climate change allegations; how the lawsuits’ claims and arguments compare to each other; takeaways from the rulings; key battlegrounds (geographically or otherwise) for contemporary climate-change litigation; how strategies (on either side of these types of cases) may be shifting.
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How perceptions of climate change and its impacts are driving calls for insurance reform; what insurance reform would conceivably consist of; any substantive measures or actions you are seeing on this front; potential pressures or other changes the insurance industry should be aware of or may already be pivoting in anticipation of.
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A March 4 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in San Francisco v. EPA; basis for the ruling; what the Court’s decision means for permit holders and also for the EPA’s authority and future agency actions; additional background regarding the Clean Water Act and associated environmental obligations.
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California legislation aimed at getting fees from major oil companies to help pay for climate damage; how the Make Polluters Pay Climate Superfund Act would work, if implemented; past attempts to pass such legislation; prospects for SB 684’s passage; whether similar legislation is in the pipeline in other states or been implemented into law.
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Recent or otherwise noteworthy developments involving the National Environmental Policy Act; the Act’s origins, function, and landmark impacts, or key effects; any recent rulings of note that stand to affect NEPA’s status and force; NEPA-related actions already taken, or being considered, by the second Trump administration.
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The resignation of a senior federal prosecutor in response to pressure from the Trump administration to commence a criminal probe of a contract awarded by the Biden-era Environmental Protection Agency; nature of the green banking program at issue in this showdown and the related funding mechanism for it; status of the program and of contracts awarded under that program; what else participants in that program should be aware of at this point; how this latest resignation adds to growing concerns over the direction of the U.S. Department of Justice since Donald Trump returned to office.
Related information:
https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/18/politics/justice-department-dc-criminal-division/index.html
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A ruling by Texas’ 12th District Court of Appeals in a dispute over responsibility for cleaning up an oil spill; key points in the ruling; what this case may illustrate on a more general level regarding environmental remediation obligations on the part of current or future owners of a property; what companies should know about related liability risks involving this issue; how to minimize risk.
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Confirmed or forecasted cuts in staffing and programs at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; potential impacts on EPA regulations, enforcement actions, or other priorities; legality of the personnel or program changes; likelihood of, and grounds for, litigation over the cuts.
Related information:
https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/epa-employees-told-dismissed-immediately-rcna190474
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A state judge’s dismissal of New Jersey’s climate change lawsuit against fossil fuel companies; basis for the dismissal; potential next steps for the state of New Jersey; how climate change lawsuits by other states and cities over oil companies’ alleged deception are faring; how the different lawsuits’ arguments and claims compare to each other.
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Trends (in the region of your choice) involving data centers; how crypto, artificial intelligence, and other technological developments have fueled an increasing demand for more data centers; implications for the real estate and construction sectors; concerns being raised over the data centers’ massive energy use and related impacts on the environment.
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Executive orders or other early actions by the new administration regarding the environment and/or energy production. Which of the new developments stand out to you as the most significant, and why? How likely are these actions to bear fruit, and what legal challenges or other obstacles can one confidently expect in response? Further, what is the significance (and legality) of a president declaring an “emergency” of some kind, and what subsequent actions might that enable?
Related information:
https://www.npr.org/2025/01/22/nx-s1-5269717/trump-energy-emergency-climate
https://apnews.com/article/trump-paris-agreement-climate-change-788907bb89fe307a964be757313cdfb0
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s decision to suspend permitting and review requirements to facilitate rebuilding efforts in the wake of massive wildfires in southern California; what to know about the governor’s Executive Order, the environmental measures at issue, the duration of the suspension, and whom, or what, it applies to.
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Greenwashing allegations being made against Procter & Gamble over the company’s environmental practices and its eco-friendly marketing and packaging claims; grounds for a lawsuit over P&G’s activities; how companies can minimize the risk of being hit with greenwashing allegations over their actions or those of their suppliers or affiliates; pointers on reputation management and legal strategies in response to a greenwashing lawsuit.
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A ban announced by President Biden on Jan. 6 on new leases for offshore oil and gas drilling; areas to which the ban applies, and when it is to take effect; what the action means for oil companies’ existing leases; authority under which President Biden invoked the ban; what to know about the 1953 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act; whether Congress or the incoming Trump administration could modify or overturn the ban; and perhaps a related look at business and legal trends involving offshore drilling nationwide, either recently or in the context of a comparison between the Biden administration and the first Trump administration.
Related information:
https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/03/business/offshore-drilling-ban-biden/index.html
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Legislation signed by New York’s governor last month, establishing a “Climate Superfund;” when the law takes effect and what companies and activities it applies to; what the new law could mean for energy companies’ potential liability risks and associated obligations; whether other states have, or are considering, similar measures; potential for legal challenges to these types of state laws.
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Your choice of three or more noteworthy developments or trends in the energy or environmental arena from the past year. Take your pick of lawsuits, rulings, regulatory actions, legislation, or other developments, either nationally or in the region of your choice, with added information, as you see fit, regarding compliance obligations, liability risks, best practices, or other potential implications in the near or longer term, whether for a specific industry or more generally speaking.
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How states are responding to increased risk of serious wildfires and associated damage to commercial or residential properties; related issues involving property owner obligations pertaining to property modifications, upkeep, disclosures, or other responsibilities; any new bans, limitations, or other restrictions on new construction; how the real estate industry and construction industry are responding to increased concerns over wildfires.
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A Dec. 18 ruling by the Montana Supreme Court in a climate change case; basis for the ruling; implications for the energy industry and for existing or future legal claims regarding climate change; how the Montana ruling compares to climate change rulings in other jurisdictions.
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Environmental liabilities that can arise when buying real estate; red flags to watch for during or prior to negotiations and a possible purchase; applicable disclosure requirements; how to determine potential risk areas; contract terms that may provide protection to a buyer in the event that some warning signs are overlooked; additionally or alternatively, how to minimize environmental liability following a completed real estate purchase; any instructive rulings or related regulatory actions that may help illustrate these points; any additional practical guidance regarding purchaser obligations and the due diligence process.
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A recent report by the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; what the report concludes regarding the safety of the nation’s drinking water supply and risks of cyberattacks against drinking water systems; how government agencies are addressing cyberthreats to these systems; related obligations on the part of system operators.
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A November ruling by a Dutch appeals court, which overturned a landmark ruling that ordered Shell to cut its carbon emissions; basis for the appeals court’s ruling; where the litigation against the energy company may go from here; related climate-change litigation trends (in Europe or more widely speaking) and practical takeaways for the energy sector.
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A lawsuit filed by the state of Maine against major fossil fuel companies over their alleged impacts on the climate; key claims in the lawsuit; remedies being sought by the Maine litigation; status of other states’ climate-related lawsuits against fossil fuel companies, and any noteworthy outcomes, interim developments, or trends stemming from those lawsuits.
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