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Ninth Circuit Upholds Scope 1 and 2 Climate Disclosures, Questions Scope 3 and SB 261 Constitutionality

Ninth Circuit Upholds Scope 1 and 2 Climate Disclosures, Questions Scope 3 and SB 261 Constitutionality

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has issued a significant ruling regarding California's corporate climate-disclosure laws, SB 253 (Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act) and SB 261 (Climate-Related Financial Risk Act). The court declined to block SB 253's Scope 1 and Scope 2 disclosure requirements, allowing them to proceed. However, it concluded that SB 253's Scope 3 disclosure requirement and SB 261 in its entirety likely violate the First Amendment. The ruling stems from an appeal of a denied preliminary injunction sought by several chambers of commerce and business associations. For companies preparing initial SB 253 reports, the November 10, 2026 deadline for Scope 1 and Scope 2 reporting remains unchanged. The critical question of whether the Scope 3 disclosure requirement can be severed from the rest of SB 253 has been remanded to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Ninth Circuit Blocks California's Scope 3 and Climate-Risk Reporting Requirements

Ninth Circuit Blocks California's Scope 3 and Climate-Risk Reporting Requirements

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has issued a significant ruling regarding California's climate disclosure laws, SB 253 and SB 261. In the case of United States Chamber of Commerce v. Sanchez, the court allowed California's Scope 1 (direct emissions) and Scope 2 (emissions from purchased energy) greenhouse gas reporting requirements to proceed. However, the court blocked the State's Scope 3 (other emissions connected with the supply chain and products) and climate-related financial risk reporting requirements, stating they likely violate the First Amendment. This decision reverses a district court's denial of a preliminary injunction for these specific provisions. The court distinguished between Scope 1 and 2 data, which are measurable from a company's own operations and considered commercial speech, and Scope 3 data, which requires companies to compile and estimate information about third parties' activities, making it subject to stricter scrutiny. Similarly, SB 261, which mandates reports on climate-re...

Court blocks California from enforcing climate disclosure laws

Court blocks California from enforcing climate disclosure laws

By Jonathan Stempel Nov 9 (Reuters) - A federal appeals court dealt a setback to California's desire to enforce its first-of-its-kind climate disclosure laws, blocking the state from requiring large companies to disclose climate-related financial risks and "indirect" greenhouse gas emissions.

Manhattan District Attorney Establishes Corporate Crime and Antitrust Task Force, Signaling Shift in Enforcement

Manhattan District Attorney Establishes Corporate Crime and Antitrust Task Force, Signaling Shift in Enforcement

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. has announced the formation of the office's first Corporate Crime and Antitrust Task Force. This new task force aims to target antitrust violations, healthcare fraud, and other consumer fraud committed by corporations and their executives. This move by the Manhattan DA's office is part of a broader trend among state and local prosecutors to strengthen criminal antitrust enforcement, a domain traditionally dominated by the Department of Justice (DOJ). The task force will focus on complex investigations, emphasizing entity-level accountability and utilizing financial intelligence tools. This development suggests that companies operating in Manhattan, particularly in financial services, healthcare, real estate, and consumer-facing industries, could face investigations originating from local authorities, independent of or in coordination with federal agencies.

Total Hydrogen Solutions Integrates Honda Fuel Cell Modules into New Hydrogen Generator Fleet

Total Hydrogen Solutions Integrates Honda Fuel Cell Modules into New Hydrogen Generator Fleet

Total Hydrogen Solutions Integrates Honda Fuel Cell Modules into New Hydrogen Generator Fleet

California Enacts New Corporate Slavery Disclosure Law, Requiring Historical Records Search

California Enacts New Corporate Slavery Disclosure Law, Requiring Historical Records Search

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2599, a new law that mandates large companies operating in California to conduct a records search for specified slavery-related conduct that occurred before the Thirteenth Amendment. This legislation, the first of its kind in the United States, requires covered entities to submit an affidavit of their findings to the California Civil Rights Department, which will then be made public. Companies subject to AB 2599 must have been in existence on or before December 31, 1964 (or have a predecessor from that period), do business in California, and have annual worldwide gross receipts exceeding $100 million. The records search must cover any involvement in buying, selling, using enslaved persons as collateral, providing loans for their purchase, or insuring such transactions. Ropes & Gray LLP has issued a memorandum detailing the requirements of this new law.

Pakistani Farmers Sue German Firms RWE and Heidelberg Materials Over 2022 Flood Damages

Pakistani Farmers Sue German Firms RWE and Heidelberg Materials Over 2022 Flood Damages

39 farmers from Pakistan's southern Sindh province are suing German energy firm RWE and cement maker Heidelberg Materials in a German court. The lawsuit alleges that the companies' climate-warming emissions contributed to the 'apocalyptic' flooding in 2022, which devastated their crops, livestock, and homes. The farmers, including Abdul Hafeez Khoso, claim that the floods, which affected a third of Pakistan, killed 1,700 people, and impacted 30 million, were intensified by climate change caused by these industrial emissions. The companies are being targeted not for direct operations in Pakistan, but for their overall contribution to global emissions. This legal action is supported by Pakistani and European organizations, aiming to secure compensation and advance climate justice efforts. Both RWE and Heidelberg Materials deny wrongdoing, stating their operations comply with German laws and that such claims are unfounded.

California Enacts New AI Law Regulating Attorney Use of Generative AI in Legal Practice

California Enacts New AI Law Regulating Attorney Use of Generative AI in Legal Practice

California Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 574 into law on September 30, 2026, making California the first state to statutorily regulate attorneys' use of generative AI. Effective January 1, 2027, the law adds Business and Professions Code section 6068.1, which prohibits attorneys from delegating the practice of law to generative AI. It mandates that attorneys take reasonable steps to verify AI output, correct fabricated content, and implement confidentiality safeguards. The law also amends Code of Civil Procedure section 128.7, requiring the attorney responsible for a pleading to personally verify every citation, regardless of whether AI supplied it. Additionally, attorneys must disclose the use of generative AI to the court for all submitted documents. This legislation comes in response to incidents where attorneys filed briefs containing fabricated citations and information generated by AI, as seen in cases like Mata v. Avianca, Inc., Noland v. Land of the Free, L.P., and LNU v. Blanche.

Santa Monica Voting Rights Lawsuit Dismissed by Judge Following U.S. Supreme Court's Callais Decision

Santa Monica Voting Rights Lawsuit Dismissed by Judge Following U.S. Supreme Court's Callais Decision

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has dismissed a decade-long voting rights lawsuit against the city of Santa Monica. The lawsuit, filed in 2016 by the Pico Neighborhood Association and Maria Loya, challenged the city's at-large election system, alleging it diluted the voting power of Latino residents. Judge Daniel M. Crowley granted Santa Monica's motion for judgment on the pleadings, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's April 2026 decision in *Louisiana v. Callais*. This landmark ruling established that election-law challenges seeking race-conscious remedies under the 14th Amendment require a 'strong inference that intentional discrimination occurred' in the adoption or maintenance of the challenged electoral system. Attorneys for Santa Monica, led by Kahn A. Scolnick of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, argued that federal equal-protection guarantees supersede state voting statutes and directly apply to the California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (CVRA). They contended that the plaintiffs could not meet the heig...

California Tech Giants Sue to Block New Social Media Law Protecting Teens

California Tech Giants Sue to Block New Social Media Law Protecting Teens

Tech giants Meta, Google, and TikTok have filed lawsuits to prevent a new California law, designed to protect the mental health of children on social media platforms, from taking effect. The law, part of a series of bills signed by Governor Newsom this year, aims to block social media companies from offering 'addictive' features to users under 16. These features include infinite scroll, autoplay, and recommendation algorithms, which are cited as contributors to a teen mental health crisis. The lawsuits, filed in multiple federal courts in California last week, argue that the law infringes upon the companies' First Amendment rights. They contend that the law would make the state an 'editor, curator, and controller of online speech' and would hinder efforts to provide safe and enriching experiences for young users. The companies are seeking court intervention to block the law before its January effective date.

Bay Area Air Regulators Delay Gas Water Heater Phaseout, Expand Exemptions

Bay Area Air Regulators Delay Gas Water Heater Phaseout, Expand Exemptions

Bay Area air quality regulators have voted 16-1 to delay the phaseout of gas water heaters by one year, pushing the mandate to January 2028. The amended rule also introduces significant exemptions, potentially allowing up to half of property owners replacing a gas water heater to avoid switching to electric heat pumps. The original rule, adopted in 2023, does not require replacement of working water heaters but mandated zero-emission models for new installations. Exemptions now include low-income owners, those with high housing costs, homes with physical barriers like cramped spaces or outdated electrical systems, and those needing water heaters 30 gallons or smaller, for which no zero-emission models are currently available in the U.S. This decision signals a broader trend in California of easing back on aggressive pollution reduction targets for home appliances.

Floods bring rare relief to US Southwest reservoirs as Lake Powell rises 20 feet

Floods bring rare relief to US Southwest reservoirs as Lake Powell rises 20 feet

Record rainfall in the U.S. Southwest is providing rare relief to the region's depleted reservoirs