On Friday, June 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its highly anticipated opinion in Loper Bright v. Raimondo, overruling Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., in a move that ultimately shifts power over federal regulations away from Federal agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to the judiciary. Under Chevron deference, courts were required to defer to agency interpretations of silent or ambiguous statutes so long as those interpretations were formally promulgated pursuant to an express or implicit Congressional delegation of authority.
In Loper, the Court held that an agency’s interpretation of a statute it administers is not entitled to deference. Rather, courts are required to interpret ambiguous statutory provisions. While the Court attempted to limit the fallout from Loper by stating that prior decisions applying Chevron remain good law under statutory stare decisis, regulated parties will doubtless test the bounds of the court’s decision in the coming years. Exactly how the Court’s decision will apply to past and future disputes remains to be seen.
Chris Leason and Liam Vega Martin share their analysis of the Court’s opinion. Click here to read the full article.
about the authors
Chris Leason practices in Environmental Law and Environmental Litigation specializing in regulatory compliance and civil enforcement defense. Areas of focus include hazardous waste, chemical facility anti-terrorism standards, regulatory enforcement, rulemaking, litigation risk management and due diligence audits. A nationally recognized Resource Conservation and Recovery Act practitioner, he has expertise in the identification and management of solid and hazardous wastes, financial assurance, corrective action, permitting, underground storage tank testing and removal, and land disposal restriction requirements.
Liam Vega Martin works primarily in the firm’s commercial litigation and environmental practice groups. He assists with a multitude of legal issues across many industries, including auto dealer representation, corporate disputes, trusts and estates, and environmental regulations such as federal compliance with solid/hazardous waste, RCRA/TSCA rulemakings, site assessments, and due diligence.