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US Liable for Environmental Remediation Costs Under Contract Clauses

Client Alert | 1 min read | 11.04.11

On October 31, the Court of Federal Claims in Exxon Mobil Corp. v. U.S. held that the government was liable for environmental cleanup costs because it had breached the “Taxes” clause in three World War II-era contracts under which the government had agreed to pay “any new or additional . . . charges” required by federal, state, or local law “by reason of the production, manufacture, sale or delivery” of aviation gasoline.  Exxon continues the trend of recovery of environmental remediation costs under government contracts and is consistent with ongoing efforts to recover environmental remediation costs and toxic tort litigation defense costs under Public Law 85-804 indemnification provisions in Cold War-era contracts being conducted for clients by C&M.

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Client Alert | 5 min read | 09.03.26

DOT Final Rule Narrows Airline Delay and Cancellation Reporting Obligation Under FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) published a final rule amending 14 CFR Part 234 that fundamentally changes how airlines report the causes of flight delays and cancellations. Effective October 19, 2026, the rule implements Section 511(b) of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 by creating a new reporting category, the “Section 511(b) category,” for ten specific events that Congress determined are not attributable to airline control. The rule simultaneously narrows the existing "Air Carrier" reporting category by expressly excluding those same ten events....