Duncan and Grever, with Laurence Tribe, Contribute to SCOTUS Clean Air Act Ruling

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did not interpret the Clean Air Act properly in setting limits on power plant emissions of mercury without considering the costs of doing so. On behalf of Peabody Energy, Shook Partners Tristan Duncan and Tom Grever, in association with Harvard Professor Laurence Tribe, submitted an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in support of the parties challenging EPA’s mercury rule. The Court’s majority decision adopted one of the arguments posed by Shook and Tribe not made by any of the other states, organizations or companies in the opposition group.

The brief argued that administrative offices do a cost-benefit analysis as an ordinary and customary practice, making it a significant consideration required before enacting regulations. The ruling also emphasized the role of lower courts in either issuing a stay or expediting review of administrative regulations, a concern that later factored into a stay in a case challenging the Clean Power Plan.

Michigan v. EPA, 576 U.S. ___ (2015).