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Lawyer Shoots Self in Foot with Shotgun Approach to Litigation

Client Alert | 1 min read | 04.05.17

On April 4, 2017, in US ex rel. Hayes v. Allstate Insurance Co., the Second Circuit joined the D.C. Circuit in holding that the “first-to-file” rule is not jurisdictional; rather it goes to whether the plaintiff has stated a claim on which relief may be granted.  In an accompanying non-precedential Summary Order, the court also upheld dismissal with prejudice as to the relator, an attorney, for violating Rule 11 by alleging that more than sixty companies – largely insurance companies – were systematically non-compliant with certain statutory obligations to reimburse Medicare even though he had no personal knowledge that all named companies had participated.  In affirming the lower court, the Second Circuit concluded that denial of leave to amend to add 38 new defendants was not an abuse of discretion.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 05.28.26

PFAS Regulatory Alert: EPA Rolls Back RCRA Proposed Rule on “Hazardous Waste” but Does Not Disturb Proposed RCRA Rule on PFAS

Earlier this month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) withdrew a February 2024 Biden administration proposed rule, “Definition of Hazardous Waste Applicable to Corrective Action for Releases From Solid Waste Management Units,” under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).[1] The withdrawn proposal would have revised RCRA corrective action regulations to expressly apply the broader statutory definition of “hazardous waste,” rather than only the narrower regulatory definition. Now, EPA is maintaining the status quo for corrective action under RCRA. However, EPA’s withdrawal of its proposed RCRA hazardous waste definition makes no mention of its corresponding proposal from 2024 to list nine per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as RCRA hazardous constituents.[2] This disjointed withdrawal, while providing some certainty for regulated entities, does not resolve how EPA plans to address PFAS under the RCRA program....