On April 14, a U.S. Magistrate serving with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana issued a ruling in a matter involving the attorney-client and attorney work product privileges. The case is Valley Forge Insurance Company v. Hartford Iron & Metal, Inc. The District Court held that the attorney’s…
Stored materials present a potentially serious point of tension between lenders and borrowers in the negotiation of a construction loan agreement. In construction lending, the term “stored materials” refers to the materials and items that are purchased in advance of their use and incorporation into the project. Those materials will…
The new administration at the Environmental Protection Action has taken these actions: Reconsidering the New Methane Rules. On June 3, 2016, pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA), EPA promulgated amendments to the existing oil and gas New Source Performance Standards, 40 C.F.R. Part 60, Subpart 0000, and established new methane emissions…
In Federal Contractors Beware DHS Proposes Robust Cybersecurity Procurement Regulation to Safeguard Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), my colleagues and I discuss the proposed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) procurement regulation to safeguard CUI and its internal inconsistencies/ambiguities.
Yesterday, the Environmental Protection Agency published a notice in the Federal Register seeking public comments on any “regulations that may be appropriate for repeal, replacement, or modification.” This notice invites an unprecedented level of review over EPA’s entire existing body of regulations. The notice aims to implement the President’s February…
As any builder will tell you, it is impossible to know with certainty the exact amount a project is going to cost. Variables affecting the cost run the gamut from labor and material costs to delays for unforeseen conditions, weather or other causes. The longer a project is expected to…
On April 11, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reversed the lower court and held, in a unanimous opinion, that the American Forest Resource Council has standing to challenge the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2012 designation of 9.5 million acres of federal forest lands as…
On April 11, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit vacated the Environmental Protection Agency’s December 18, 2008 CERCLA/EPCRA Administrative Reporting Exemption for Air Releases of Hazardous Substances from Animal Waste at Farms rule (Rule) that created hazardous substance reporting exemptions for all farms, except large animal raising operations…
For builders working in California—already one of the most expensive states for new construction—a new bill winding its way through the legislature could add yet more costs. For this reason, Senate Bill 71 (SB 71) should be on the radar of developers and construction companies that do business in California.…
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma has dismissed the Sierra Club’s Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) citizen suit, filed against several oil and gas producers seeking declaratory and injunctive relief. The District Court invoked the Burford abstention doctrine (Burford v. Sun Oil Co.) and primary jurisdiction doctrine to…