Science-based targets (SBTs) rely on scientific facts to achieve specific conditions or outcomes. SBTs reflect the best available science and set goals intended to prevent human activities from harming the environment....more
On March 31, 2025, a coalition of environmental groups in New York filed a lawsuit to compel the New York Department of Environmental Conservation ("DEC") to issue regulations implementing the Climate Leadership and Community...more
Last week, we posted about New York State’s enactment of the Climate Change Superfund Act. We promised to continue to monitor developments concerning climate superfund legislation and to update readers as necessary. It’s been...more
In the last four years, California has adopted some of the nation’s most innovative air regulations, including a ban on new gasoline-powered car sales by 2035 and a prohibition against diesel-fueled trucks visiting state...more
Recent raging winter storms have caved in streets, wrecked piers, collapsed homes and apartment buildings, and submerged property up and down California’s coastline. As sea levels continue to rise from climate change,...more
This week, we discuss the first settlement between a state and a group of young plaintiffs who claimed that their government’s inadequate climate policies violated their constitutional right to a healthy environment. We...more
For half a century, young people in the United States have played an active role in ongoing efforts to address climate change. Moving into 2024, young climate litigants find themselves in a promising position: They recently...more
On December 26, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published an Interim final rule updating its October final rule restricting the use of some hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), a key substance used in refrigeration...more
On August 14, 2023, a Montana state court issued a first-of-its-kind judgment in the United States in favor of young plaintiffs in climate litigation. The action Held v. Montana featured 16 youth plaintiffs alleging that...more
On September 27, 2023, six “Portuguese young people” were heard by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in a lawsuit against 32 European governments, including all EU member states, alleging that their failure to act...more
The fifth largest economy in the world just passed a law to require any business with over $1 billion in revenues to report their carbon emissions. Yes, California is leading the way, again, in greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction...more
On July 25, 2023, Representative Ted Lieu and 19 other Democratic lawmakers from the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, requesting that the Department of Justice...more
In a statement released on May 3, 2023, the Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO) called for companies in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) and grocery retail sectors to reduce their...more
A trial has been scheduled for June 12 in a case involving climate-related constitutional challenges to actions by the State of Montana, its governor, and various state agencies. In Held v. Montana, sixteen Montana...more
California Senate Bill 253, the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act, if passed, will require all companies that do business in California and report over $1 billion in annual revenue to report on the full range of their...more
On January 10, the Biden-Harris Administration released the U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization: A Joint Strategy to Transform Transportation, which is designed to cut all greenhouse emissions from the...more
This alert looks at developments in environmental law that were at the forefront in 2022; the trend is expected to continue into 2023 as the Biden administration continues to act on its regulatory initiatives in the energy...more
Environmental nonprofit ClientEarth, with support from other activist groups, has commenced litigation in a Paris court against a global food-products company. The claimants contend that Danone has breached France’s Corporate...more
New York State’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) was enacted in 2019 to eliminate 100% of climate pollution caused by humans in New York State. The CLCPA set a target of 85% reduction in greenhouse gas...more
Soon the Environmental Protection Agency will propose greenhouse gas (GHG) regulations for the oil and gas industry sector. The White House Office of Management & Budget (OMB) has begun formal review of an EPA proposal to cut...more