PRACTICE AREAS
Air Quality
Bay Law Group advises and represents clients with respect to both the Clean Air Act and California air quality laws, with experience with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the California Air Resources Board, and various regional air districts, including Bay Area, South Coast, San Joaquin Valley and Santa Barbara Air Districts. Our expertise spans a broad range of air quality matters, including permitting, preemption analysis, enforcement defense, renewables, greenhouse gas regulation, reporting, auditing, and due diligence.
Brownfield Development & Contaminated Sites
Whether our clients are property owners, developers, sellers or purchasers, our team of attorneys has deep experience in all aspects of brownfield development, property transactions, vapor intrusion, contaminated sites, and risk management. We work with environmental engineers and scientists in development of environmental assessments, remedial investigations and cleanup plans, perform due diligence, and to negotiate regulatory agreements, purchase and sale agreements, and environmental insurance policies, to assist our clients in reaching the goals they are seeking to achieve.
EHS Compliance Audits & Legal Registries
Environmental compliance audits often reveal “hidden” regulatory and other liabilities within facilities and are designed to identify regulatory gaps that require corrective action. We have conducted hundreds of multi-media (air quality, hazardous waste and materials, water quality, storm water, and health and safety) EHS compliance audits of all major industry sectors throughout the United States and overseas. Leading edge companies understand the critical importance of building and maintaining tools that help manage EHS compliance risk. An Environmental Legal register is a risk management tool that, in its absence is often a root cause for environmental noncompliance. It can also be used to show regulatory agencies that the facility operates in good faith. A Legal Registry Identifies all potentially applicable environmental (federal, state, regional, and) requirements that are "applicable" to current and prospective operations and activities.
Our attorneys have assisted clients with the development of compliance programs, audit protocols, and EH&S management systems, and with assessing clients’ conformance to industry standards and agency guidelines regarding compliance management.
Endangered Species & Natural Resources
We have broad experience representing clients with respect to species and other natural resource issues, extending to the federal and state Endangered Species Acts, Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Lacey Act, California Coastal Act, and similar laws. Our work involves Section 7 consultations and Section 10 Habitat Conservation Plans, conservation easements and habitat management agreements, implementation agreements, civil and criminal defense, including citizen suits including habitat assessments. We work with wildlife consultants to assess habitat and “take” issues, with respect to both defense and project development.
Hazardous Waste & Hazardous Materials
Bay Law Group lawyers have in-depth experience with CERCLA, RCRA, HWCL, EPCRA, the HSAA and the Medical Waste Management Act along with a host of other related laws. Our experience ranges from litigating claims, compliance counseling, site closure and post-closure, financial assurance obligations, and due diligence, and includes hazardous materials transportation issues, pipeline safety, medical and radioactive waste regulations, and release reporting obligations. We represent clients in front of all federal and state agencies, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Toxic Substances Control, Regional Water Quality Control Boards, among others.
Land Use & CEQA
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Our attorneys have experience in working with clients as they navigate the CEQA process, partnering with technical and other experts in seeing a project through to the finish line. Our experience in all aspects of local, state and federal environmental laws will assist in addressing any environmental and natural resource issues that must be addressed in project planning.
Legislative & Regulatory Counseling
Bay Law Group attorneys have extensive experience tracking and analyzing new EHS laws and regulations and are uniquely qualified to advise on legislative implications and strategies to comply.
OSHA
Our practice centers on environmental, health and safety elements of OSHA/CalOSHA regulations, include matters involving hazard communication, chemical regulation, general industry standards, asbestos, and reporting obligations.
Our attorneys have extensive experience developing compliance programs, procedures, checklists, training, and self-assessment or auditing tools to support clients’ occupational health and safety compliance program.
Proposition 65, Consumer Products & Chemical Regulation
Bay Law Group’s Proposition 65 and Consumer Products practice encompasses the full spectrum of relevant laws and regulations. In addition to Proposition 65, our attorneys have handled matters concerning, among others, Green Chemistry initiatives, Unfair Business Practices laws, Toxics in Packaging Laws, the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act, and Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act. We have defended hundreds of Proposition 65 cases brought by the California Attorney General and private enforcers, and counseled clients on regulations ranging from wood products to formaldehyde to flame retardants.
In addition to products, Bay Law Group attorneys are among the most experienced in the state in advising clients on Proposition 65 compliance for building owners and managers.
Sustainability
We have a proven track record having permitted hundreds of electric charging stations throughout California and the western states. We guide organizations as they advance their sustainability road map strategies while advising on how to navigate the dizzying array of ESG and CSR reporting frameworks. We also provide advice on managing the risk of “greenwashing” and helping organizations that unintentionally make false and misleading “green claims” in violation of the Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guide rules.
Water Quality
Our water quality practice includes all aspects of the Clean Water Act, the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, Section 404 wetlands permitting, enforcement defense, including administrative actions and citizen suits, and NPDES/WDR and stormwater permitting, auditing, and compliance. Our experience extends to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the California State Water Resources Control Board and Regional Water Quality Control Boards.
Asbestos & Lead-Based Paint
Our attorneys are expert at all aspects of the complex array of asbestos and lead-based paint requirements. We advise clients including property owners, managers, tenants, and contractors regarding notifications and disclosures, demolition and renovation project compliance with survey requirements, abatement requirements, and accidental release response and reporting.