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Chevron Doctrine Overruled – What’s Next?

Read Time: 1 min

Of Counsel Michael Blumenthal (Cleveland) was interviewed by 3E in an article published on July 23, 2024, about the overturning of the Chevron Doctrine and its potential impacts. Michael discusses long-term impacts, the increase of judicial scrutiny, legal and regulatory challenges, and impacts on the rulemaking and legislative process, and what the future may hold.

In terms of the overall impact, Blumenthal, who represents clients in environmental due diligence, mergers and acquisitions, and compliance with various environmental regulations, said the Supreme Court ruling to overturn the Chevron Doctrine was “a landmark decision that has effectively forever pivotally changed the relationship between administrative agencies and the judiciary.”

“You have people who have devoted their lives, their careers to EPA and doing nothing but focusing on toxicity, health risks, how certain contaminants migrate, how certain people are exposed,” Blumenthal said. “The bodies of work that they’ve developed is immense, and historically, there was always deference given to the hard work that these career scientists who have worked on these particular bodies of law.”

Blumenthal added that, unlike in the past, agency work will no longer receive special deference. Courts will now consider it alongside input from private party litigants and make their own independent decisions.

“The administrative agencies will need to adapt to this new landscape given the overruling of the Chevron Doctrine. As they learn to adapt and draft rules accordingly, they can expect many litigation challenges,” Blumenthal said.

Michael is a former Ohio Assistant Attorney General who worked in the Environmental Enforcement Section.

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Insights

News Release

Financial Services Litigator Hannah Kunc joins McGlinchey in Cleveland

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Podcasts

Forever Chemicals, Forever Litigation?

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Alert

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Alert

The PFAS Matrix: Potential Risks, Corrective Actions, and Regulatory Compliance

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Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often dubbed "forever chemicals," are increasingly scrutinized for their environmental persistence and health risks. Businesses that manufacture, use, or dispose of PFAS face a growing web of regulations and potential liability for contamination. This PFAS guide explores strategies for clients to proactively assess and address PFAS concerns, aiming for both regulatory compliance and minimized legal exposure.

Alert

This is the End … of Chevron Deference. What Does It Mean and What Comes Next?

July 1, 2024

In a maximalist decision that went further than even the most ardent opponents of Chevron deference thought possible, the Supreme Court finally and emphatically overruled Chevron deference, the watershed rule that governed the level of deference afforded to administrative agency interpretation of ambiguous statutes for nearly forty years.

Alert

Chevron Deference is on Thin Ice

January 18, 2024

On Wednesday, January 17, 2024, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Loper Bright Enterprises, Inc. v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc. v. Dep’t of Commerce, a pair of cases where a majority of the Justices made clear that Chevron deference is on borrowed time.

Podcasts

Podcast: Demystifying Agency Rulemaking, Ep. 2: Mastering Participation in the Process

September 1, 2023

In the first part of our two-part series on agency rulemaking, we explored how the Administrative Procedures Act, the major questions doctrine, and the Chevron doctrine affect Federal agency rulemaking. In this part, we will explore the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Regulatory Flexibility Act, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, and the importance of participating in the rulemaking process.

Podcasts

Podcast: Demystifying Agency Rulemaking, Ep.1: Navigating the Administrative Procedures Act to Safeguard Against Overreaching Regulations

August 18, 2023

In the first episode of our two-part series, “Demystifying Agency Rulemaking,” McGlinchey attorneys Michael Blumenthal, Douglas Charnas, and David Waxman will delve into the history and evolution of the Administrative Procedures Act (APA) and its enforcement, including a review of cases involving the major question doctrine and the Chevron doctrine.

Alert

How the Sackett Decision Changed the Chevron Doctrine

July 18, 2023

The Chevron doctrine is one of the most important principles of administrative law in the United States. It states that when a federal statute is ambiguous, courts should defer to the reasonable interpretation of the agency that administers the statute, unless Congress has clearly expressed a different intent. The doctrine, which was established by the Supreme Court in Chevron v. NRDC (1984), aims to respect the expertise and policy choices of executive agencies, as well as the separation of powers between the branches of government.