Supreme Court Extends Time Frame for Challenges to Regulations

The Supreme Court gave companies more time to challenge many regulations, ruling that a six-year statute of limitations for filing lawsuits begins when a regulation first affects a company rather than when it is first issued. The ruling in the case—the latest in a series of challenges to administrative power—could amplify the effect of the blockbuster decision overturning a foundational legal precedent known as Chevron deference, which required federal courts to defer to agencies’ reasonable interpretations of ambiguous statutes. That decision imperils countless regulations, particularly on the environment, and advances a longstanding goal of the conservative legal movement. Environmental advocates warned that the combined effect of the decisions on administrative agencies could be especially profound for the thousands of regulations enacted by the Environmental Protection Agency.