D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals

The Machine at the Center of the Clean Power Plan

By William Boyd, Ann Carlson and Cara Horowitz

As attention shifts from last night’s debate to today’s oral argument on the Clean Power Plan, we thought it worth focusing on the machine at the heart of the President’s plan to cut greenhouse gases from the electric power sector: the electricity grid.  You might think that the largest machine in the United States is one …

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What Does Justice Scalia’s Death Mean for the Clean Power Plan?

Basically, everything

I am very sensitive to the emotions surrounding the sudden death of Justice Antonin Scalia and feel deep sympathy for his family, many friends and colleagues.   He was a towering intellectual force and we will be dissecting his influence for years to come.  Yet the death of a public figure — especially one as …

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As Predicted, Premature Suit to Block Clean Power Plan Implementation Fails

Petitioners don’t meet standards for extraordinary writs

The case filed by 15 disgruntled states, led by West Virginia, seeking to block the implementation of the Clean Power Plan has been dismissed by the D. C. Circuit Court of Appeal as premature.  Here’s an explanation of the legal and political basis for the lawsuit.   As predicted when the states filed the lawsuit, …

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Coal States File Premature Petition to Block Clean Power Plan

AGs Sue For Tactical and Political Reasons Even Though Their Legal Case is a Loser

Attorneys General from 15 states, led by West Virginia, filed a petition in federal court yesterday to block the Clean Power Plan (CPP) from going into effect.  The filing seems to be more tactical and political than a serious legal claim:  the Environmental Protection Agency has yet to publish the rule in the Federal Register …

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Breaking News: D.C. Circuit Dismisses Challenge to Clean Power Plan on Procedural Grounds

But More Challenges Will Follow

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has dismissed the first challenge to EPA’s proposed Clean Air Act Section 111d rule to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants (known as the Clean Power Plan) on the grounds that the rule is only a proposed rule, not a final one.  The court’s opinion can be found …

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Previewing a VERY Big Week for Environmental Law in the Courts

UPDATE: The Associated Press reports that late Sunday, February 26th, U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier announced a one-week postponement of the trial in the BP oil spill case that had been scheduled to begin the next day.  The postponement is reportedly due to substantial progress that has been made in marathon settlement talks that …

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