"In October 2017, President Donald Trump’s critics were celebrating. They’d won their latest fight against the new administration’s industry-friendly environmental agenda, and were confident in racking up more victories.
“It was very gratifying, but it was not unexpected,” Center for Biological Diversity attorney Michael Saul said, recalling the district court decision that revived Obama-era methane restrictions for the oil and gas industry.
The ruling followed two other legal rebukes for Trump’s energy and environment policies, decisions that came down in quick succession in the early days of his term. The new administration had gotten off to a rough start in the courtroom.
Fast forward to 2021, and the story of the Trump team’s legal scorecard is more complicated, showing a mixed record of success, failure, and unresolved cases. Its exact win-loss rate in environmental cases is the subject of ongoing debate—a moving target depending on which lawsuits are tallied and how they’re categorized."
Ellen M. Gilmer reports for Bloomberg Environment January 11, 2021.