In a consequential ruling on standing for regulated parties, S&C obtained a sweeping Supreme Court victory that will clear the way for targets of government regulation to bring legal challenges. S&C’s client, Diamond Alternative Energy, and other companies that use or sell liquid fuel had challenged an EPA waiver exempting California’s “Advanced Clean Cars” program from federal preemption. After the D.C. Circuit held that the challengers lacked standing, the Supreme Court reversed 7-2 in Diamond Alternative Energy LLC et al. v. Environmental Protection Agency et al.
For decades, the EPA has permitted California—and California alone—to obtain a narrow waiver from federal preemption under section 209(b) of the Clean Air Act. In 2022, the EPA reinstated a once-granted, once-revoked waiver for California’s “Advanced Clean Cars” program. That program includes stringent greenhouse-gas emission standards, and a mandate requiring automakers to meet a 22 percent zero-emission-vehicle target by model year 2025.
S&C’s client, a Valero Energy subsidiary, and others challenged the EPA’s approval of this California program. S&C led the briefing for the successful certiorari petition and the merits briefing, and Jeff Wall delivered the oral argument.
Writing for the majority, Justice Kavanaugh stated that “commonsense economic principles support the fuel producers’ standing.” He added: “Because the fuel producers have suffered classic monetary injury caused by a government regulatory action, it would be surprising and unusual if invalidating the regulations did not redress the fuel producers' injuries.”
The S&C team was led by Jeff Wall and Morgan Ratner.