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Vault Law Resource Center

Environmental Law

Overview

Environmental law can differ greatly depending on an attorney’s client base; one can work for a public interest group or firm to fight to preserve the environment or can represent companies to navigate environmental regulations. On either side, the practice heavily involves regulations and laws at the national, state, and local level. Practitioners in this area should be comfortable with science as well as politics, which both figure heavily into the practice. Environmental lawyers for public interest groups can work long hours for little pay and feel that they are always fighting deeper pockets. Lawyers representing companies can feel frustrated by the regulations that prevent commercial activity. In large firms, many real estate, energy, and project finance lawyers will deal with environmental regulations in their deals, and litigators representing companies in these sectors will also deal with environmental issues. Among areas environmental lawyers may handle include air quality, chemicals regulation, California’s environmental standards, contamination, hazardous materials, insurance, natural resources, mining, occupational safety and health, Superfund, sustainability, toxic torts, water, wildlife protection, and more.

Top Ranked Firms



Practice Area Q&A’s

Beveridge & Diamond, P.C.

Erika H. Spanton & Mary K. Burdette

Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP

Rachel Saltzman

Latham & Watkins

Stacey VanBelleghem & Robin Hulshizer

Beveridge & Diamond, P.C.

Kaitlyn Shannon & Leigh Barton

Kirkland & Ellis

Emily Tabak

Advice from Vault Law

The Top Five Environmental Law Firms

The Top Five Environmental Law Firms

By Travis Whitsitt

Practice Area Insights: How to Break Into an Environmental Law Practice

Practice Area Insights: How to Break Into an Environmental Law Practice

By Vault Law Editors

What’s Hot, or Not, in 2023

What’s Hot, or Not, in 2023

By Rebecca King-Newman