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Find Lawyers in California, United States for Environmental Law
Practice Area Overview
Environmental law involves an intricate matrix of federal and state public welfare statutes enacted to protect both human health and our natural resources. The economic and socio-geopolitical impact of these laws requires the practice of environmental law to continuously evolve. Areas of environmental law include the following:
Regulatory
The input and experience of an environmental lawyer is crucial in designing, supporting, and auditing environmental compliance systems. Environmental lawyers often participate in the administrative process on the federal and state level to encourage sound rulemaking. They also assist clients in sorting through regulatory ambiguities, which sometimes arise in enforcement proceedings.
Litigation
Environmental litigation occurs at both the civil and criminal level. Enforcement proceedings with federal and state regulators are conducted through either administrative adjudications or in court. Most federal environmental statutes have citizen suit provisions allowing individuals to initiate enforcement litigation on behalf of the government. Suits contesting environmental permits and siting decisions occur frequently and can cause significant delays for projects. Superfund designations are a source of significant litigation, particularly in the cost recovery area. Other areas of environmental litigation include: toxic torts, natural resource damages, water rights disputes, brownfields, endangered species challenges, climate change, and groundwater contamination suits.
Business Transactions
Environmental laws can significantly impact the economics of an M&A or real property transaction. If a facility does not have the entitlements to operate; has an expensive compliance issue that must be remedied; or has significant cleanup liability, it can materially alter the viability and/or structure of a deal. Clients depend on environmental lawyers to establish deal parameters and translate risks into economic terms for the valuation process.
Strategic Corporate Planning
Depending on how environmental regulations develop, a company could gain a significant economic advantage over its competitors. Evolving regulation in areas such greenhouse gas emissions have the potential of altering the business model of some companies, while creating growth opportunities for others.
Corporate Governance
Events such as the Deepwater Horizon accident are redefining the roles of senior executives and boards of directors. There is a new wave of internal controls that many corporations are implementing in response to regulatory and shareholder influence.
Crisis Management
An environmental crisis such as an oil spill, toxic leak, or refinery explosion can be a defining moment in the history of a corporation. When a crisis hits, all aspects of environmental law come into play and requires experienced, clear-eyed counsel to help corporations, municipalities, and other impacted entities to successfully respond to and emerge from such an event.
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Cities
Cecily Barclay focuses her practice on land use and entitlements, real estate acquisition and development and local government law. She regularly assists landowners, developers and public agencies throughout Northern California in all aspects of acquisition, entitlement and development of land, including land use application processing, drafting and negotiating purchase and sale agreements, negotiating and securing the approval of development agreements, general plan amendments, specific plan...
Chris Berka is a nationally recognized trial lawyer with a practice focusing on environmental, real estate, energy, natural resources, product liability and contract matters. He has resolved more than two hundred cases for clients in a range of industries and sectors, including technology, aerospace, oil and natural gas, wind energy, real estate development, pharmaceuticals, higher education, transportation, news media, mining and consumer products. In addition to his litigation practice, Chr...
Alan N. Bick is the co-managing partner of Bick Law LLP. Alan is a former partner of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP where he practiced environmental law for over 25 years and was co-chair of the Environmental Practice Group. Alan has extensive experience in cost recovery actions under CERCLA, RCRA, and the state equivalents; defense of agency enforcement actions; mass and toxic tort defense; natural resource damage actions; CEQA, NEPA and ESA litigation. He also advises clients on environmen...
Marc Bruner is a partner with the firm's Environment, Energy & Resources practice. Marc represents governmental entities and private companies in a wide variety of environmental, land use, and natural resource matters. He counsels clients on formulating long-term development strategies, preparing and processing environmental studies and land use plans, and obtaining the necessary federal, state and local permits and approvals for a broad range of private and public development projects &n...
Nicki Carlsen is the co-leader of the firm’s Environment, Land Use & Natural Resources Group. Her practice focuses on land use, environmental compliance and litigation. She has over 25 years of experience with the federal, state and local regulations affecting development projects, including land use planning and subdivision laws, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), California Coastal Act, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Clean Water Act, endangered species act...
Chris Carr is widely regarded as one of the leading project development, environmental, and energy lawyers in the United States. Drawing on his experience with the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of State, Mr. Carr represents businesses, land developers, public agencies, and nonprofits in all areas of environmental and natural resource law, including energy, transportation, water, forestry, mining, coastal and marine resources, and agriculture. In particular, his pract...
Sophia (Sophie) Castillo counsels domestic and international importers, distributors, national brands, private labels, institutional suppliers, family-owned food processing businesses, and retail grocers on compliance, litigation, and risk avoidance surrounding California’s Proposition 65, as well as other state and national laws related to chemicals and toxics. She advises clients involved in numerous industries across the entire supply chain, including food and beverage, apparel, cook...
During over 30 years representing clients in complex environmental, toxic tort, and land use litigation, class actions, and administrative proceedings, Jeffrey has been involved in precedent-setting cases affecting the way industries such as oil & gas do business in California. Clients in many industries rely on his extensive experience when dealing with agency oversight and civil disputes. Jeffrey Dintzer has over 30 years of experience representing companies in the energy, manufacturing...
Pete Duchesneau’s practice focuses on most aspects of environmental law involving litigation, administrative proceedings, regulatory compliance and business transactions. He handles complex environmental litigation in federal and state courts, including CERCLA, RCRA, Clean Water Act, products liability, toxic tort, and Proposition 65 actions, among others. Pete has significant experience with emerging chemicals and drinking water contamination. In addition to litigation, Pete counsels c...
Matthew Gray focuses his practice on land use entitlement processing and litigation. He represents a range of local agencies, real estate developers and landowners in all stages of the land use entitlement and development process. He assists clients in negotiating and securing approval of development agreements, general plan amendments, specific plans, zoning, subdivision approvals, and annexation of property into cities and special districts; regularly appears before planning commissions and...
Alicia Guerra has developed a multi-disciplinary practice focused on local, state, and federal land use entitlement and permitting and environmental review for a broad sector of private industry, developers, and public agencies. Ms. Guerra’s practice often involves complex and controversial projects at all levels of the administrative process including due diligence, land use entitlements, development agreements, disposition and development agreements, permitting advice, and counsel for...
Jennifer L. Hernandez co-chairs Holland & Knight’s National Environmental Team and leads the West Coast Land Use and Environment Practice Group. She divides her time between the San Francisco and Los Angeles offices, and works on projects in Northern and Southern California, as well as the Central Valley. She has achieved national prominence in her work on brownfields redevelopment, wetlands and endangered species, and master planned community projects. She represents private, nonpr...
Julie focuses on environmental and land use counseling and litigation for complex development projects. She resolves issues that arise under the California Environmental Quality Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Water Act, federal and state species protection statutes, and a range of other local, state and federal statutes and common law doctrines that affect land use. An experienced litigator in California and federal courts, Julie defends projects and uses this experienc...
Gary Lincenberg is a name partner at one of the most prestigious litigation firms in the country and the National Chairman of the ABA White Collar Crime Committee. Mr. Lincenberg's success in the past five years in white collar cases has been remarkable. His two recent trials were against the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, where Mr. Lincenberg defended the former CFO of a semiconductor manufacturer against a securities fraud indictment alleging revenue recogniti...
Craig Moyer is a member of the firm’s Management Committee and leads Manatt Energy and Environmental. His practice focuses on all aspects of environmental and energy law. Among other honors, he was selected in 2014 as one of the Top 100 Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal. Craig has repeatedly been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America , and in 2013 received the “West Coast Law Firm of the Year” by Oil & Gas Awards. Craig has advised clients in connection with...
Pete Nyquist is a partner in the firm’s Los Angeles office. His practice covers a broad range of environmental issues, including federal and state Superfund and contaminated sites, administrative and enforcement matters before federal and state regulatory agencies, cost recovery and citizen suit litigation, and transactional or environmental diligence support. Pete regularly represents clients in matters involving investigation, remedial or corrective action requirements at contaminated...
Brett Oberst leverages his more than 25 years of experience working with various industries to guide clients through complex environmental litigation and has resolved claims at all stages of litigation, including trial and appeal. A member of Alston & Bird’s Environment, Land Use & Natural Resources Group, Brett focuses on environmental law and representing clients in civil, criminal, and administrative proceedings related to soil contamination, groundwater contamination, air em...
Tamsen Plume is a partner in Holland & Knight’s Public Policy & Regulation Group. Her practice concentrates on land use and environmental law. She represents project proponents in land use and environmental permitting, compliance, and due diligence matters for complex land use, development and redevelopment projects. Ms. Plume’s practice includes: Local land use entitlements, including development agreements, general plan amendments, zoning amendments, variances, design re...
Deborah Schmall is widely recognized as one of the leading environmental law practitioners in California. She recently served as the Co-Chair of the Global Environment and Energy Practice at Paul Hastings. She is ranked Band One in Chambers for California Environmental Law. Starting with her career at the U.S. Justice Department’s Environmental Enforcement Section, where she prosecuted civil and criminal enforcement matters under a range of federal environmental laws, Deborah has practi...
Barbara Schussman, a partner in the firm's Environment, Energy & Resources practice, focuses on securing federal, state and local agency approvals needed to develop a wide range of private and public projects, including industrial scale solar facilities, university campuses, hospitals, research and development facilities, water supply and storage projects, oil refineries, maritime port and airport expansions, and numerous industrial, commercial, housing and mixed use developments. Barbara...
Mr. Van Wyngarden has successfully defended a large variety of Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 companies in connection with claims arising out of the release of hazardous chemicals, business, corporate and real estate disputes, product liability, and the alleged violation of federal and state statutes, including the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Clean Air Act, the Petroleum Marketing Practices ...
David has over twenty-five years of land use and environmental law experience. His practice focuses on CEQA, climate change, development agreements, discretionary permits and entitlements, infrastructure agreements, public-private partnerships, subdivisions, zoning, environmental regulatory compliance, CERCLA, RCRA, and Proposition 65. David regularly appears before planning commissions, city councils, and other federal, state, and local government agencies on land use and regulatory matters....
Matt has the experience and track record to guide clients through all types of disputes involving environmental regulation and litigation. He is a go-to resource for companies facing litigation and agency proceedings and a trusted advisor when it comes to real estate development, contamination concerns, and environmental regulatory compliance. Matt Wickersham has a broad national environmental and energy practice involving complex litigation, regulatory counsel, and transactional matters. He ...
Dorothy Wolpert is a founding member of Bird Marella. Her practice includes trial experience in copyright infringement, legal malpractice (as both plaintiff and defendant), probate matters, post-acquisition disputes, entertainment cases, and several precedential cases related to the construction of the Los Angeles subway. She has argued in the Supreme Court of the State of California and before all the U.S. district courts in the state, as well as the Ninth Circuit. Dorothy has served as a ju...
Natural resources attorney with unique expertise combining public agency work with water law. Specializes in emerging groundwater laws and implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). Immersive, team-player, prioritizing a preemptive approach to representation. Jena Acos’ practice thrives at the intersection of water and public agency law. She intimately understands how natural resource issues interrelate with the economic, social and regulatory aspects inherent ...
Dylan Crosby is an associate in the Real Estate practice at Paul Hastings and is based in the firm's San Francisco office. He is a trusted advisor to clients across diverse industries, including, energy, real estate development, construction, transportation, agriculture and timber, mining, and technology companies. Mr. Crosby regularly advises clients on a variety of sensitive business concerns, from commercial disputes, corporate governance, regulatory inquiries and investigations, to enviro...
Environmental attorney with expertise in complex, niche water resources issues. Unique practice combining litigation and transactional work. Known for approachable manner. With an affable approach, Jessica Diaz embraces challenging legal questions and guides clients through uncertain terrain in the areas of water supply and land use in California. She also has experience with large, high-stakes real estate transactions related to water and assisting institutional corporate clients with niche ...
Natural resources attorney with expertise in water resources, NEPA/CEQA and forestry issues. Former attorney with U.S. Department of Agriculture advising on forestry and federal land management matters. Combining a background working with and for government agencies, Liz Esposito leverages her diverse, hands-on natural resources experience to provide strategic counsel and advocacy on a range of natural resource matters. On behalf of private and public clients, Liz assists in the acquisition, ...
Natural resources attorney combining expertise in land use, CEQA and water resources issues. Specialized experience in infrastructure, real estate development projects and water-related litigation. A committed team leader with an innovative, business-oriented approach to representation and advocacy. With combined experience in regulation and litigation, Chris Guillen acts as a trusted advisor on complex projects as they relate to natural resources issues. His expertise spans the intersection ...
Sherry E. Jackman is a senior associate in Greenberg Glusker's Environmental Practice Group. Her practice focuses on environmental litigation and compliance counseling. Sherry’s professional expertise specifically includes: counseling clients regarding federal and state environmental statutes and regulations, including CERCLA, RCRA, the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, CEQA, Proposition 65, California Hazardous Waste Control Law, and the Endangered Species Act; representing clients i...
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