Environmental Law

Our environmental law attorneys can see both the forest and the trees in helping clients develop strategies to achieve their goals and to ensure regulatory compliance along the way.

Property development and business operations need to move smoothly through a challenging regulatory landscape. Our Environmental Practice Group proactively guides clients through the legal complexities associated with environmental compliance and land use regulations.

Our clients include regional and national developers, property and business owners, lenders and other financial institutions, regulated businesses and corporations, waste disposal, management and remediation companies, sureties, environmental organizations, solid and hazardous waste generators, and contractors. We advise them in a variety of contexts, including:

• Federal, state, and local regulatory compliance, assurance and enforcement defense
• Due diligence and site investigation and remediation
• Project approvals and licensing
• Brownfields redevelopment
• Conservation law and “green infrastructure”
• Environmental litigation
• Air, water, and waste treatment, disposal discharge permitting and infrastructure development
• Federal and state “superfund” cleanup
• Indoor air quality assessments
• Natural resource allocation protection and restoration
• Environmental management, audit and compliance

Our skilled and experienced environmental lawyers have the legal know-how to cost-effectively counsel clients on environmental insurance protection, wetlands preservation, septic systems regulations, sewer and storm water discharge permitting, Massachusetts Environmental Protection Act and Endangered Species Act compliance, solid waste rules, and licensing required under Massachusetts tideland regulations (Chapter 91). We also identify and address environmental and land use issues including institutional controls to manage long-term risk and exposure that arise during project permitting and financing.

Our objective is to shape comprehensive permitting outcomes, and avoid costly litigation when appropriate, or to achieve rapid dismissal or early favorable settlement when possible and cost-

effective. To that end our Environmental Practice Group works closely with our Litigation Practice Group to strategically guide clients through potentially contentious matters. Should disputes arise, we diligently work to recover costs from other responsible parties when applicable, and to prepare defenses to government enforcement actions and private party claims under CERCLA, Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 21E, and other environmental laws.

Our environmental lawyers are recognized experts. We have served as board members and counsel at the U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works, as senior legal counsel within the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, on American Bar Association Committees, and on conservation, planning and zoning boards at the municipal and state level. Furthermore, our lawyers bring a strong practical, technical background to environmental issues, including masters and doctoral level degrees in various engineering disciplines, and have achieved professional accreditation from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) as LEED(R) Green Associates.

You can rest assured that our environmental lawyers offer the exceptional depth and breadth of practice you need for straight answers and sound legal advice.