Environmental Crimes: White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement

Crowell & Moring has a successful record of defending environmental criminal and civil cases involving alleged violations of the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and other regulatory statutes. Our ability to team lawyers from our White Collar practice with the top-notch litigators in our Environment & Natural Resources Group means that our clients benefit from the extensive trial and litigation experience of both groups and the combined subject matter expertise of these accomplished professionals. This teaming approach also ensures that our clients gain the insights of former high-ranking officials of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Interior, as well as our former Justice Department attorneys.

Our environmental crimes matters have ranged from federal jury trials and grand jury investigations to internal compliance and counseling. Clients regularly turn to us for advice on existing systems and practices, development of remediation plans, and defense of anticipated or active proceedings.

Our environmental crimes team also has extensive experience guiding clients successfully through congressional investigations. Working closely with professionals in our Public Policy Practice Group, our team to bring our clients the right mix of subject matter expertise, congressional knowledge and savvy, and 360 degree perspective on the potential jeopardy that can flow from such probes.

Matters our attorneys have handled include the following:

Defense of major construction company of felony charges, obtaining an acquittal following a month-long jury trial involving Clean Air Act and related allegations;
Defense of business entity in federal trial involving allegations of unlawful handling of asbestos, obtaining an acquittal following lengthy jury trial;
Grand jury Clean Water Act investigations of, among others, a joint venture engaged in dam construction on the Ohio River, a barge hauler who carried scrap metal on the Mississippi River and a chemicals manufacturer in Louisiana;
Defense of Texas oil refinery in a federal grand jury investigation involving allegations of violations of the Clean Air Act;
Defense of several mining companies for alleged criminal violations of the Mine Safety Act, including conducting the necessary internal investigations, managing subpoena responses and document productions, and defending the companies during resulting congressional inquiries and hearings and grand jury proceedings;
Defense of high-level manager/director of an aerospace company and Texas trucking company owner of alleged violations of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act;
Defense of general manager of a paper recycling facility in state court criminal prosecution of workplace safety violations;
Defense of employees of a refinery in an NTSB investigation of the release of petroleum products;
Defense of foreign shipping companies in federal grand jury investigations of unlawful discharge of untreated bilge water and oil waste in violation of the MARPOL Treaty and environmental criminal statutes;
Defense of oil and natural gas drilling company in federal criminal investigation into alleged improper use of out-of-service pipeline;
Representation of international chemical distribution company in conducting internal investigation and self-reporting of non-compliance with state "Controlled Chemicals" statute;
Representation of municipality and an owner of US's largest importer and distributor of freshwater fish in prosecutions brought under the Endangered Species Act, defense of an internationally renowned falconer prosecuted for violations of the Wild Bird Conservation Act, and an individual investigated for violations of various wildlife endangerment statutes;
Defense of an asbestos remediation company and its chief executive on federal charges of defrauding EPA and OSHA in their licensure, oversight and enforcement functions.
Defense of an environmental manager in a Clean Water Act federal prosecution alleging fraudulent reporting of groundwater remediation monitoring;
Representation of a chief environmental compliance officer in a Clean Water Act grand jury investigation relating to allegedly negligent discharges from a manufacturing facility into an adjacent waterway;
Defense of a government official in a Clean Air Act grand jury investigation concerning allegedly reckless operation of a recycling operation at a federal government facility.

In Europe, our London colleagues have experience in a wide range of matters, including advising clients concerning the management of international catering waste and automotive waste; defending a manufacturer against allegations involving the release of toxic substances into a river adjoining its site; and, advising a construction company on managing and controlling dust levels associated with a development near residential houses.

For assistance with Environmental Crimes and related Civil matters, please contact:

Washington, DC:

Rick Beizer - 202.624.2878 or rbeizer@crowell.com
Phil Inglima - 202.624.2795 or pinglima@crowell.com
Elliott Laws - 202.628.5116 or elaws@crowell.com

Los Angeles, CA:

John Vandevelde - 213.271.2789 or jvandevelde@crowell.com
John Crouchley - 213.271.2784 or jcrouchley@crowell.com
Kevin Mayer - 213.443.5544 or kmayer@crowell.com

Orange County, CA: