The Third Circuit vacated as moot a lower court decision that dismissed a contractor's third-party complaint against Pennsylvania and the commonwealth's natural resources agency for cleanup costs associated with Quehanna Wild Area Nuclear Site. The contractor argued that the lower court erred by...

The Ninth Circuit upheld the constitutionality of Hawaii's regulation of commercial weddings on the state's unencumbered beaches in all respects but one. A pastor and wedding planning companies filed suit against the state's Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) alleging that its permit re...

The Michigan Supreme Court held that under the state's Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act (NREPA), a municipality can be held responsible for, and required to prevent, a discharge of raw sewage that originates within its borders, even when the raw sewage is discharged by a privat...

The Sixth Circuit held that the CAA's citizen suit provision does not allow an environmental group to file suit to compel the state of Ohio to administer a particular federal CAA regulation it has chosen no longer to administer. In 2006, the Ohio General Assembly passed legislation that allows the s...

A California appellate court held that the California Coastal Commission exceeded its jurisdiction when it approved amendments to a city's certified local coastal program at the request of state agencies and over the objection of the city. The proposed amendments would override the city's local land...

A district court held that residents may add four new defendants in their lawsuit against energy companies for alleged water contamination due to hydraulic fracturing operations near their homes. During the course of discovery, the residents learned that the proposed defendants participated in t...

A California court overturned a small claims court's grant of damages in favor of a woman who filed suit against an automobile manufacturer for making fraudulent claims about her hybrid car's fuel economy and performance. The manufacturer's fuel economy ratings were obtained using the test metho...

A Washington appellate court held that the developer of 30 residential waterfront lots must seek a permit under the Shoreline Management Act of 1971 prior to building private docks to accompany the new homes. Because the docks would be designed for the private, noncommercial use of the owners of...

A district court held that EPA does not have a mandatory duty to review and, if necessary, promulgate new PSD rules for ozone simply because the NAAQS for ozone has been revised. The history of the CAA and its numerous amendments unambiguously demonstrates that Congress differentiated duties ste...