After Fifth Circuit Ruling, Gulf Lease Sales Scheduled for December 20

Offshore Oil Platforms

After the  Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ order last week, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced that it scheduled Lease Sale 261 in the Outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico for December 20.

In September, a federal judge ruled the Biden administration must go through with offshore lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico by September 27 as originally planned and under original conditions. The Fifth Circuit concurred but amended the ruling, pushing back the lease sale date to November 8.

Read the full story

American Oil Company Shatters Earnings Record on the Back of Soaring Gas Prices

American oil company Chevron nearly doubled profits from 2021 to 2022, posting record-breaking annual earnings of $35.5 billion, the company announced Friday.

The company’s 2022 profit was roughly one-third greater than its previous record, set in 2011, and came off the back of high gas prices, The Wall Street Journal reported. The company reported an annual revenue of $246.3 billion, up from $162.5 billion in 2021, and a fourth quarter profit of $6.4 billion, with revenue at $55 billion.

Read the full story

Biden Admin to Give Chevron Oil Pumping License in Venezuela: Report

The Biden administration is set to give Chevron Corp. a license to pump oil in Venezuela, according to The Wall Street Journal.

As part of the deal, Chevron would retain partial control of both production and maintenance for a select set of run-down oil fields it previously had stakes in with Petróleos de Venezuela SA, a state-run oil company in Venezuela, according to the WSJ, citing people familiar with the matter. The deal, which is contingent on certain debts being repaid, would also mean President Joe Biden is continuing to move away from sanctioning the socialist regime.

Read the full story

The Supreme Court Might Overturn One of Justice Stevens’s Landmark Decisions

by Kevin Daley   Late Justice John Paul Stevens left a far-reaching legal legacy in his 34 years on the Supreme Court, writing landmark decisions on presidential powers, property rights and the death penalty. Yet the endurance of his legacy might be an open question. The Supreme Court signaled weeks before Stevens died Tuesday it might overturn one of his most significant opinions, a 1984 decision called Chevron v. National Resources Defense Council. The Chevron case initially seemed like an arcane agency issue of little consequence. In the sweep of time, however, it became one of the most important precedents governing the power of federal agencies. Chevron provides that the courts should defer to an agency’s interpretation of an ambiguous law it administers, provided that interpretation is reasonable. For example, under Chevron, the courts should defer to the Environmental Protection Agency’s reading of an unclear provision in the Clear Air Act. Supporters of Chevron say it ensures complex regulatory questions will be resolved by subject matter experts, instead of layman judges who are ill-equipped to parse complicated areas like pharmaceutical certification. They frame the approach as one of judicial humility and a recognition of the modest role courts should play…

Read the full story

When Asked If They Identified as ‘American,’ Many US Corporations Stand Silent

by Tim Pearce   Ten international corporations contacted by The Daily Caller News Foundation got their start in the U.S. but stayed silent when asked if they saw themselves as “American” companies. Nine others responded to TheDCNF’s inquiry by either identifying with their American heritage, obscuring their loyalties or declining to comment altogether. TheDCNF wanted to gauge the commitment of international corporations with roots in the United States to keeping an “American” identity. TheDCNF did not define what an “American” company looks like or list out any principles or ideals that “American” companies are committed to, leaving each business to attach meaning to the name if one chose to stand by it. Representatives for Amazon, Apple, Chevron, General Electric and others did not respond to TheDCNF’s inquiry. A spokesman for the health care giant UnitedHealth Group asked for clarification of the question but never responded after clarification was given. The tech companies Google, Facebook and Twitter – all headquartered in California – are under distinct pressure to increase transparency and be upfront about their commitments, especially as it relates to censored content. Conservatives especially have taken issue with the tech giants’ policies, and U.S. politicians are wary of the companies’ operations in…

Read the full story

Court Memos Shed Light on Michael Bloomberg’s Role in NYC’s Climate Crusade

by Chris White   One of the attorneys attached to former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s environmental nonprofit was heavily involved in litigation targeting ExxonMobil, according to a document obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation. Gavin McCabe, a lawyer connected to Bloomberg Philanthropies, signed an amicus brief in June supporting New York City’s yearlong climate lawsuit against Exxon and Chevron. He’s one of at least eight attorneys hired by attorneys general across the country to work on environmental litigation. Bloomberg founded Bloomberg Philanthropies in 2017 in part to provide attorney general (AG) offices with attorneys to help push green energy policies. McCabe’s involvement suggests Bloomberg’s money is playing a role in the anti-Exxon campaign. He made himself a part of the lawsuit demanding energy companies compensate the city for the alleged damages from man-made global warming. U.S. District Judge John Keenan dismissed the case in July after months of arguments. The city’s lawsuit is the third such claim brought against oil companies Exxon, Chevron, BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Conoco Phillips. Another judge in Northern California struck down identical lawsuits in June brought by the cities of San Francisco and Oakland. The legal maneuvers are a boon for trial lawyers as…

Read the full story

Courts Suspend Trial Lawyer’s License Trying to Extort Billions From Chevron

by Tim Pearce   The D.C. Court of Appeals stripped Steven R. Donziger of his license to practice law in D.C. Sept. 14, leaving him unable to practice law anywhere in the U.S., Legal News Line reports. Donziger led a lawsuit against the oil and gas company Chevron for allegedly causing environmental and social harm to the Amazon region of Ecuador. Donziger previously lost his license to practice law in New York after the New York Supreme Court suspended it in July. He had only been licensed to practice law in New York and Washington, D.C., so he has effectively been banned from practicing law in the U.S., according to Legal News Line. “Because Judge [Lewis A. Kaplan’s] findings constitute uncontroverted evidence of serious professional misconduct which immediately threatens the public interest, respondent should be immediately suspended,” the New York Appellate Division of the Supreme Court wrote in its decision to suspend Donziger, Legal News Line reported. After an Ecuador court issued an $18 billion judgement against Chevron in February 2011, Donziger appeared that he would win the case. The judgement was later reduced to $9.5 billion, then a U.S. district court in New York nullified the judgement due to fraudulent and illegal activities by Donziger, according to…

Read the full story