Everyone hates data centers. Lawyers love them

Key Points:

• Jason Morris, a land-use attorney in Phoenix, has shifted from occasional data center projects to spending 70% of his time defending data center developers amid growing legal battles over noise, water use, and permits.
• Data centers have become a major source of economic activity and investment but face increasing opposition from over 300 jurisdictions in 44 states that have enacted moratoriums, leading to numerous lawsuits and regulatory challenges.
• Large law firms are capitalizing on the data center boom by establishing specialized teams in energy, regulatory, and real estate law, with energy lawyers particularly in demand due to the centers' substantial power needs.
• Plaintiffs' lawyers are filing nuisance lawsuits against data centers, citing noise pollution and declining property values, using legal strategies similar to those applied against industrial facilities.
• If local legal obstacles significantly impede data center construction, the industry may seek federal or state legislation to limit municipalities' ability to block projects, akin to the Telecommunications Act of 1996 that restricted local bans on wireless towers.