Posts by Leah Bengston

On February 19, 2026, Governor Kay Ivey signed Senate Bill 71 (Act No. 2026-81) into law, significantly restricting the ability of Alabama state agencies to adopt environmental standards that exceed federal requirements. The Act became effective immediately. The Act prohibits state agencies from adopting or amending rules that establish new or revised numeric limits for…

Written by Kimberley Hale, Max Zygmont, and Andrea Hartung On February 12, 2026, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it has finalized the repeal of the agency’s 2009 Endangerment Finding, which had found that six greenhouse gases—carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride—may endanger public health and welfare. In adopting the…

We’re pleased to welcome Heather Friedman as a Partner in our Atlanta office. Heather brings more than 20 years of national experience advising clients on complex transactional matters including brownfield redevelopment and environmental risk strategy. Her practice spans high-value real estate projects across the U.S., representing REITs, institutional investors, financial institutions, and private developers. Heather…

Written by Bart Turner and Andrew Haygood In a regulatory shakeup as significant for employers as the college football conference re-alignment was for football fans, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is undertaking its first regional office realignment since the agency’s 1970 creation under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Changes to college football…

KMCL is excited to welcome another exceptional attorney to our team. Jim Thompson joined our Atlanta office earlier this month as our newest Associate. Jim brings a strong background in commercial litigation and regulatory compliance. He is an experienced civil litigator with a broad range of representational experience, including product liability litigation, complex business disputes,…

We are honored to share that 16 KMCL attorneys have been recognized in the 2026 editions of 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙇𝙖𝙬𝙮𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝘼𝙢𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙖® and 2 attorneys in 𝘽𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙇𝙖𝙬𝙮𝙚𝙧𝙨: 𝙊𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙒𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝® in America. KMCL has also been named a Tier 1 National Firm in Environmental Law and Litigation – Environmental in the 2026 edition of…

The PFAS litigation landscape continues to evolve, with federal judges consolidating more and increasingly diverse PFAS-suits into the centralized Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF) Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) (MDL No. 2873). A recent decision by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) highlights this trend, as the City of Savannah’s PFAS suit was transferred to the MDL…

KMCL is proud to be recognized in the 2025 Chambers and Partners guide with “Band 1” rankings for Environmental Law in both Georgia and Alabama. This recognition also includes 12 individually ranked KMCL attorneys—nine in Atlanta and three in Birmingham. This top-tier ranking reflects the deep trust our clients place in us and the dedication,…