On Dec. 10, 2025, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced the following new and updated policies, final guidance for publicly owned treatment works, and a rural background study, all related to the State’s efforts on addressing Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) and their effects. Over the last several years, New York has been
Industrial Hemp: President Issues Executive Order to Reschedule Marijuana to Schedule III Substance
On December 18, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order titled “Increasing Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research,” which directs the Attorney General to “take all necessary steps to complete the rulemaking process”—initiated in May 2024 by the U.S. Drug Enforcement
On December 22, citing security concerns, the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) announced that it was pausing leases for all offshore wind projects currently under construction. The stop-work order blocks further construction of Vineyard Wind 1, Revolution Wind, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, Sunrise Wind, and Empire Wind 1. All five projects had obtained leases
In a published opinion filed December 19, 2025, the First District Court of Appeal (Div. 5) affirmed the trial court’s post-judgment order denying plaintiffs’ Make UC A Good Neighbor and The People’s Park Historic Advocacy Group’s (collectively, “Make UC”) motion for $1,166,097.88 in attorneys’ fees under Code of Civil Procedure (“CCP”) section 1021.5 (commonly known as the “private attorney general” statute). Make UC A Good Neighbor et al. v. Regents of University of California et al. (2025) 117 Cal.App.5th 282. (“Make UC III”). The Court of Appeal rejected Make UC’s argument that it was a “successful party” because it (allegedly) obtained “important legal precedents” as to two issues on which the Court had earlier ruled in its favor (in Make UC I) prior to those holdings being reversed by the California Supreme Court, as abrogated by statute, in Make UC A Good Neighbor v. Regents of University of California (2024) 16 Cal.5th 43 (“Make UC II”). (I won’t reiterate here the detailed factual and legal history of this well-known, highly publicized, and sprawling piece of controversial litigation, but for those interested, my June 10, 2024 post on Make UC II can be found here, and my March 3, 2023 post on the Court of Appeal’s original Make UC I decision can be found here.)
In recent months, some companies have begun reconsidering their sustainability targets. This trend is influenced by a range of factors, including economic pressures and scrutiny of climate action by the current federal administration and state attorneys general. In addition, many companies with interim decarbonization goals (e.g., companies with “net zero by 2050 goals” that also
EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) recently announced a major shift in the agency’s approach to environmental enforcement, emphasizing swift, efficient achievement of compliance over punitive or expansive enforcement measures. The “Reinforcing a ‘Compliance First’ Orientation for Compliance Assurance and Civil Enforcement Activities” memo (not publicly available as of this writing) clarifies that
On December 18, 2025, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) took a significant step to break up the log jam that is precluding large load and data centers to receive power in the PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (PJM) region of the United States.[1] FERC issued an Order finding that PJM’s existing rules that pertain to generation that interconnects with load behind the point of interconnection (BTMG) are unjust and unreasonable and must be revised. FERC’s directives to PJM likely signal what FERC may require in some form throughout the nation.
Seyfarth Synopsis: New York requires hospitals and nursing home employers to implement written workplace violence prevention plans, including hazard assessments, training, and incident logging within the year.
Health care employers have long faced liabilities relating to workplace violence, most commonly from patients and visitors. Although no federal OSHA standards currently provide requirements for workplace
Both Connecticut and New Mexico are moving forward with regulations to implement statutory labeling requirements for products in certain categories that contain intentionally added PFAS. Connecticut’s labeling requirement will be effective July 1, 2026, and New Mexico’s, when approved and finalized, would go into effect January 1, 2027. Manufacturers should begin preparing now for these