Case Studies
Climate Change & Environmental
Our client, a Washington, D.C.-based practice focusing on climate change and environmental law, belonged to one of the oldest and largest firms in the nation. It advised some of the U.S.’s biggest companies on issues affecting their use of air and water and had a reputation among clients and the legal community as a leader in environmental and climate change law. But although their strong experience in litigation, regulatory and policy monitoring, trade issues and lobbying was well known, their media profile was unimpressive.
Our client, a Washington, D.C.-based government relations attorney at a national law firm, was involved in advising major utilities companies on pending climate change legislation in a newly democratic White House and Congress. There were many proposed legislative issues to watch in the coming year, such as various cap-and-trade vs. energy legislation bills, and EPA policy regulations on numerous issues impacting greenhouse gas emissions and air quality issues – along with attempts to block the regulations.
From the beginning of its history, California has been the battleground for water rights. There have even been movies made on the subject like the Oscar-winning “Chinatown” by Roman Polanski. Our client, a West Coast-based firm with several offices in California was seeking to establish its legal prowess in the areas of water rights and eminent domain. At the same time, the State of California was wrestling with water rights issues affecting the Sacramento Delta area of Northern California. Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger had proposed strict new regulations and a new governing board that were now the responsibility of incoming Governor Jerry Brown. With the changing political scene, regional environmental reporters were hungry for analysis of the new regulations and their impact on private landowners.
Our client, an AmLaw 100 international law firm, was seeking to raise the profile of its environmental practice in Los Angeles. While the leading partners had substantial experience handling major litigation impacting the environment, they were not on the same wavelength as the regional or national environmental media covering those issues. And they were becoming increasingly frustrated as other environmental attorneys with far less experience and courtroom success were being treated as thought leaders by the media.