Environmental Law

EXPERIENCED ENVIRONMENTAL ATTORNEYS

The firm has a high level of expertise representing clients in complex environmental matters, including litigation, arbitration, administrative proceedings, and regulatory compliance. Bright and Brown has represented clients in a variety of cases related to environmental law, including private-party litigation, CEQA litigation, CERCLA litigation, CPUC regulatory proceedings, DOGGR regulatory proceedings, regulatory enforcement, Proposition 65, tort and contract actions, as well as in connection with contaminated site assessment, remediation and/or regulatory closure involving the EPA, BLM, DTSC, OEHA, SWCB, numerous regional water quality control boards and fire department CUPAs. Bright and Brown has directed the assessment of dozens of contaminated properties and obtained regulatory closure of thousands of acres of former oil and gas operation lands throughout California. Bright and Brown regularly provides advice on environmental testing protocols and methodologies.

Below are a few examples of successful results obtained for our clients with respect to environmental matters:

  • Bright and Brown obtained a favorable settlement for a major landowner-developer in a litigation action relating to one of the largest planned residential developments in the history of Los Angeles County. The settlement included a multi-million dollar cash payment to the client and to compel the environmental cleanup of acreage comprising an extensive multi-year environmental remediation of the property under Bright and Brown-drafted cleanup protocols. The settlement was valued in excess of $100 Million.
  • Bright and Brown defended several major international oil companies in a litigation action in which the plaintiff demanded hundreds of millions of dollars and cleanup costs based on allegations that our clients had contaminated the property at issue through oil and gas operations. Bright and Brown settled the case on behalf of the defendants for $0.
  • Bright and Brown represented one of the country’s largest banking institutions in a litigation asserted over the contamination of real property. Bright and Brown obtained a very favorable settlement for our client valued at several tens of millions of dollars, that included a multi-million dollar payment and remediation of the property to Bright and Brown-specified cleanup levels.
  • Bright and Brown obtained a favorable settlement for its client, a private landowner, in a litigation matter pertaining to soil and ground water contamination resulting from aerospace and industrial plant operations. The settlement included a multi-million dollar acquisition of the contaminated property at a “clean” value, indemnification, and assumption of a prospective multi-million dollar cleanup obligation for soil and ground water.
  • Bright and Brown defended an independent oil and gas company against claims for several tens of millions of dollars based upon allegations the historical waste water injection operations of our client had polluted the drinking water aquifer. Bright and Brown settled the case against our client for $0.
  • Bright and Brown obtained a favorable settlement for a landowner in a litigation action pertaining to nuisance, trespass, indemnity, and regulatory violations with respect to a large property contaminated by former gas plant operations. The settlement required the defendant to remediate the property and indemnify our client against future private or governmental claims resulting from the contamination. Bright and Brown expanded the law of nuisance and trespass in a reported appellate decision in order to achieve the result.
  • Bright and Brown defended a small oil and gas operator against claims by an international aerospace company that oil and gas operations had contaminated the aerospace company’s property. Without any cross-claims to pursue, and with claims asserted against its client for millions of dollars, Bright and Brown negotiated a settlement under which the aerospace company paid our client several hundred thousand dollars to resolve the dispute.
  • Bright and Brown represented a European-based bankruptcy trustee in the regulatory closure of contaminated property in California belonging to the bankrupt estate. Because of the bankruptcy, the trustee required final closure without future recourse by the regulatory agency. Bright and Brown successfully negotiated the required closure.

Call Bright and Brown today at 818-243-2121 or contact the firm online to schedule a consultation at our Glendale, California office.