AEP v. Connecticut
The Overlooked Precedent Supporting EPA Regulation of Greenhouse Gases
Even Roberts and Scalia agreed that Mass. v. EPA is the law
An important precedent has been overlooked in the coverage of the Trump EPA’s repeal of the 2009 Endangerment Finding. The 2009 finding relied was based on , in which the Court had held that the Clean Air Act covers air pollution and directed EPA to determine whether greenhouse gases are harmful. One reason to worry about the litigation is that the conservatives Justices all dissented from Massachusetts v. EPA over the repeal. But there’s another equally important precedent: American Electric Power v. Connecticut (AEP). That ruling was joined by Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Scalia, so it may carry more weight.
CONTINUE READINGDOJ Challenge to Vermont’s Climate Law Has a Problem
The EPA’s proposed repeal of the endangerment finding undermines the U.S. position in the Vermont Climate Superfund Case.
EPA’s proposal to rescind the Clean Air Act endangerment finding is not final but it is already causing problems for the Trump Administration in court. The Department of Justice today filed a brief for summary judgment challenging Vermont’s climate superfund law. Its principal argument? That the Clean Air Act — in regulating greenhouse gases — …
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CONTINUE READINGAEP v. Connecticut oral argument
This morning, the Supreme Court heard 75 minutes of oral argument in AEP v. Connecticut. My fellow blogger, Richard Frank, already gave us a preview of the arguments. SCOTUSblog has a nice recap of what happened this morning. I would just like to highlight a few points from the oral argument. First, the Justices seem …
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CONTINUE READINGU.S. Supreme Court to Hear Climate Change Nuisance Case
The 2010-2011 U.S. Supreme Court case promises to be a blockbuster one for environmental law. The Court today announced that it had granted a petition for certiorari filed in AEP v. Connecticut (the lower court decision in the case is here). The case, brought by a number of states against the country’s five larges utilities , …
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