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Shennie Patel

Senior Counsel
Senior Counsel
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Areas of Focus

Overview

Major international and U.S.-based trade and biotechnology companies seek out Shennie Patel for her strategic guidance on their most challenging environmental and trade issues. As senior counsel in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office, Shennie focuses on complex environmental and wildlife trade customs matters, risk management, and due diligence. She is adept at strengthening and implementing compliance programs for her clients and has a deep understanding of federal environmental investigations and enforcement covering a wide range of industries such as agricultural technology, trade, and biotech. Her deep understanding of environmental law, especially wildlife trade, makes her an invaluable asset to her clients, offering them unparalleled experience and strategic legal solutions.

Career Highlights  

Prior to joining Crowell, Shennie spent 21 years as a prosecutor at the DOJ, where she gained extensive experience litigating environmental crimes. She led both nationwide and international investigation teams and prosecuted a variety of cases, including fraud, wildlife smuggling, animal welfare, and pollution crimes, in addition to organized criminal enterprises and tax evasion, working with agencies including the U.S. Department of Interior, USFWS, USDA, NOAA, the U.S. Coast Guard, EPA, FBI, HSI, and ICE.

Before joining the DOJ’s Environmental Crimes section, Shennie was an attorney-advisor with the department’s Office of Intelligence, where she worked on national security terrorism investigations and handled top secret intelligence information. She began her DOJ career as a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Special Litigation section, investigating systemic violations.

Since joining Crowell, she has represented corporate and individual clients in environmental defense and natural resources litigation, internal investigations, regulatory compliance assistance, and related white collar cases. Shennie provides strong advice to clients on large-scale, complex environmental enforcement defense strategies on both the civil and criminal sides. She offers guidance on responding to government investigations and inspections from federal agencies she has worked with throughout her career. Her experience covers key provisions of environmental laws including the Endangered Species Act, the Lacey Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as well as the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Clean Water Act.

Recent Contributions

Recently, Shennie has played a significant role in advising global companies on federal civil and criminal investigations, particularly in compliance matters centering on international and U.S. wildlife trade. Her clients consistently rely on her keen insight into domestic and customs compliance issues. Her opinions on the current trend of federal environmental crimes are routinely sought by media publications.

Career & Education

    • Department of Justice
      Trial Attorney, Environmental Crimes Section, 2009–2023
      Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, Major Crimes, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, 2008–2009
      Attorney-Advisor, Office of Intelligence, National Security Division, 2005–2008
      Trial Attorney, Special Litigation and Housing Sections, Civil Rights Division, 2002–2005
    • U.S. Office of Special Counsel
      Attorney, 2001–2002
    • Department of Justice
      Trial Attorney, Environmental Crimes Section, 2009–2023
      Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, Major Crimes, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, 2008–2009
      Attorney-Advisor, Office of Intelligence, National Security Division, 2005–2008
      Trial Attorney, Special Litigation and Housing Sections, Civil Rights Division, 2002–2005
    • U.S. Office of Special Counsel
      Attorney, 2001–2002

    • Associate, Federal Litigation- Cotton, Bledsoe, Tighe & Dawson P.C., 1998–2000
    • Associate, Federal Litigation- Cotton, Bledsoe, Tighe & Dawson P.C., 1998–2000

    • University of Houston, B.A., cum laude, sociology/anthropology, 1991
    • University of Houston Law Center, J.D., Recipient, Dean’s Scholarship, 1996
    • University of Houston, B.A., cum laude, sociology/anthropology, 1991
    • University of Houston Law Center, J.D., Recipient, Dean’s Scholarship, 1996

    • District of Columbia
    • Texas (Inactive)
    • District of Columbia
    • Texas (Inactive)

    • Law Clerk to Judge Lucius D. Bunton, III, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, 1998
    • Law Clerk to Judge Lucius D. Bunton, III, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, 1998

  • Professional Activities and Memberships

    • American Bar Association, Environment, Energy & Resources Section
    • District of Columbia Bar Association
    • Texas Bar Association

    Professional Activities and Memberships

    • American Bar Association, Environment, Energy & Resources Section
    • District of Columbia Bar Association
    • Texas Bar Association
I pride myself on being able to demystify the environmental enforcement process, criminal or civil, for non-prosecutors, and I look forward to working with clients so they understand what agency investigators and prosecutors are looking for, and how to handle negotiations with the government. Crowell offers a great opportunity to bring my public service experience to the table and make sure clients are prepared.

— Shennie Patel

Shennie's Insights

Client Alert | 1 min read | 10.03.25

Government Shutdown: Impact of Shutdown on EPA Enforcement

E&E News reported that EPA will continue to operate during the shutdown relying on “carryover funds.” Carryover funds generally are unspent and unobligated funds from a previous budget period that are carried forward to cover allowable costs in a future budget period. There is no indication how long EPA’s carryover funds will allow all EPA employees to continue working versus those that are “exempted” or “excepted” personnel, meaning they can continue to work either because they are separately funded (“exempted) or must continue to work because of their position (“excepted), such as emergency responders or criminal agents....

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Representative Matters

  • Advising major international wildlife and plant trade Fortune 500 companies in the strategic management of potential liabilities, including in connection with supply chain and regulatory compliance matters as well as customs enforcement actions and investigations.
  • Serving as federal environmental regulatory counsel to a North America trade association whose members are regulated primarily under USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and USFWS.
  • Advising major metropolitan city utility company in responding to potential “take” violations under the MBTA and recommending proactive maintenance steps to prevent future issues.
  • Advising companies regarding mandatory disclosure obligations under USFWS and USDA regulations and related reporting processes.
  • Counseling client and assisting with responses to USDA-APHIS Emergency Action Notice, resulting in positive resolution with the agency without any penalties or license revocations.
  • Represented a senior executive during an EPA witness interview in connection with a federal fraud and environmental dumping investigation.
  • Represented employees of a global supplier of specialty chemicals in connection with federal environmental investigation, including during separate witness interviews with the FBI and EPA.
  • Worked with the State Department and DOJ, traveling around the United States and overseas teaching courses covering case evaluation, investigation, and prosecution of environmental and organized crimes.
  • Prosecuted international wildlife smuggling ring under Lacey Act, ESA, and tax evasion charges.
  • Prosecuted recycling company for environmental contamination in connection with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) as well as false statement and tax evasion, securing over $21 million for cleanup costs associated with the contamination.
  • Served as a member of the U.S. delegation at the CITES Conferences of the Parties in South Africa (2016) and Qatar (2010), covering international law enforcement issues.

Shennie's Insights

Client Alert | 1 min read | 10.03.25

Government Shutdown: Impact of Shutdown on EPA Enforcement

E&E News reported that EPA will continue to operate during the shutdown relying on “carryover funds.” Carryover funds generally are unspent and unobligated funds from a previous budget period that are carried forward to cover allowable costs in a future budget period. There is no indication how long EPA’s carryover funds will allow all EPA employees to continue working versus those that are “exempted” or “excepted” personnel, meaning they can continue to work either because they are separately funded (“exempted) or must continue to work because of their position (“excepted), such as emergency responders or criminal agents....

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Recognition

  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Bronze Medal for Commendable Service, 2014
  • U.S. Attorney General’s Office, Special Achievement and Outstanding Performance Awards (multiple years)

Clerkship

  • Law Clerk to Judge Lucius D. Bunton, III, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, 1996-1998

Shennie's Insights

Client Alert | 1 min read | 10.03.25

Government Shutdown: Impact of Shutdown on EPA Enforcement

E&E News reported that EPA will continue to operate during the shutdown relying on “carryover funds.” Carryover funds generally are unspent and unobligated funds from a previous budget period that are carried forward to cover allowable costs in a future budget period. There is no indication how long EPA’s carryover funds will allow all EPA employees to continue working versus those that are “exempted” or “excepted” personnel, meaning they can continue to work either because they are separately funded (“exempted) or must continue to work because of their position (“excepted), such as emergency responders or criminal agents....

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Insights

Client Alert | 1 min read | 10.03.25

Government Shutdown: Impact of Shutdown on EPA Enforcement

Client Alert | 4 min read | 10.03.25

Wildlife Trade in Limbo? What a Federal Shutdown Means for Your Business.

Client Alert | 2 min read | 09.23.25

The Other PFAS Shoe Drops: EPA Will Retain and Defend Its CERCLA PFAS Regulation

Blog Post | 08.28.25

Environmental Justice Is Alive And Well At The State Level

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Practices

Industries

Shennie's Insights

Client Alert | 1 min read | 10.03.25

Government Shutdown: Impact of Shutdown on EPA Enforcement

E&E News reported that EPA will continue to operate during the shutdown relying on “carryover funds.” Carryover funds generally are unspent and unobligated funds from a previous budget period that are carried forward to cover allowable costs in a future budget period. There is no indication how long EPA’s carryover funds will allow all EPA employees to continue working versus those that are “exempted” or “excepted” personnel, meaning they can continue to work either because they are separately funded (“exempted) or must continue to work because of their position (“excepted), such as emergency responders or criminal agents....

View All Insights