Does a tenant’s failure to expressly assume a commercial lease within 120 days of filing bankruptcy give its landlord the right to immediate possession of the leased premises? Yes, according to several recent court decisions. The bankrupt tenant’s landlord is entitled to immediate possession of the leased premises, without going through the time and expense
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District Courts Continue To Agree That Production SPARs Are Not Vessels
A spar is a nautical structure designed to float with the bulk of the hull below the waves-something akin to a giant buoy. Fields v. Pool Offshore, Inc., 182 F.3d 353(5th Cir. 1999). Spars are essential to the expansion of oil production in deep water and their use has led to the legal question of…
EPA Issues Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Permitting Guidance
New major and modified existing stationary sources require air permits prior to beginning construction. Where increases of criteria pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, particulate and volatile organic compounds exceed a “significance” threshold, the permittee is required to analyze available and technically feasible control technology with the goal of selecting the best available control…
Goverment Dancing With Itself: Permits for Remediation
An examination of West Virginia Highlands Conservancy Inc. v. Huffman, No. 09-1474 (4th Cir. Nov. 8, 2010), which required a permit for a mine reclamation project.…
Facebook and the NLRB: NLRB to Weigh In Regarding Employee’s Negative Comments About Her Supervisor
By Kean Miller
Employers are struggling with how to respond to employee use of social media, particularly whether and/or how to respond to – or prevent – employees from posting comments about their employers on their personal social networking platforms, such as Facebook, My Space, and Twitter. Until recently, there has been little guidance for employers in navigating…
When They Don’t Take Out the Hazardous Waste
David Mandelbaum’s monthly column for September considers the legal options facing a landlord whose tenant vacates, leaving hazardous or otherwise regulated materials behind.…
Legislature Changes Permit Process at the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality
By Kean Miller
During the 2010 Session, the Louisiana Legislature enacted Act 986 to amend La. R.S. 30:2022, the state law concerning the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality’s (LDEQ) permit process. The legislation began as House Bill 1169 and was authored by Representative Karen St. Germain. Governor Bobby Jindal signed the legislation on July 7, 2010, as Act…
EPA Recognizes That Baton Rouge Area Attained the 1-Hour Ozone Standard
By Kean Miller
The February 10, 2010 Federal Register contains a notice of EPA’s final decision that the Baton Rouge ozone nonattainment area “has attained the 1-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS).” (The Baton Rouge area consists of the parishes of Ascension, East Baton Rouge, Iberville, Livingston, and West Baton Rouge.) EPA found that the ambient…
Securities and Exchange Commission Issues Interpretive Guidance for Reporting Risks Due to Climate Change
By Kean Miller
On January 27, 2010, the SEC voted 3-2 to issue an interpretive guidance “on existing SEC disclosure requirements as they apply to business or legal developments relating to the issue of climate change.” Chair Mary Shapiro emphasized that the interpretive release is not intended to create new legal requirements, but is to clarify the requirements…
Louisiana Legislature Prepares the Way for Carbon Sequestration
By Kean Miller
Two days before the end of the 2009 Legislative Session, the Louisiana Legislature adopted the Louisiana Geologic Sequestration of Carbon Dioxide Act. Introduced as HB661, the final amended bill passed both the House and Senate unanimously. There are three major facets to the law: establishment of a comprehensive regulatory program for the control of…