Environmental
O'Melveny helps clients identify, assess, and mitigate environmental and regulatory risk across industries and jurisdictions.
International Environmental Law: Read Our Chapter in PLI’s International Corporate Practice (Fourth Edition)
O'Melveny helps clients identify, assess, and mitigate environmental and regulatory risk across industries and jurisdictions.
International Environmental Law: Read Our Chapter in PLI’s International Corporate Practice (Fourth Edition)
As environmental, health, and safety regulations have escalated, so too have the risks of owning and operating businesses subject to regulatory scrutiny and litigation. Our Environmental team helps clients in high-exposure sectors understand and appropriately mitigate these risks. We provide exposure analysis, develop tailored compliance strategies, and work with both corporate and financial investors to assess the environmental risks associated with business opportunities including negotiation of deal terms calibrated to clients’ risk tolerance.
Our team encompasses lawyers whose corporate, transactional, regulatory, and litigation experience gives them fluency across any environmentally-sensitive sector, including aviation, automotive, traditional and renewable energy, industrials, retail, semiconductors, electronics, infrastructure, chemicals, and real estate. We offer clients practical advice on issues spanning water quality and supply, air quality, permitting issues, regulation and remediation of hazardous substances (including PFAS and Proposition 65 matters), natural resource damages, reporting obligations, ESG matters, transactional due diligence and documentation, as well as advocacy before federal and state environmental agencies.
Advised private equity giant Apollo Global Management on environmental, ESG, safety and health matters in dozens of M&A transactions and financings spanning five continents, including in the chemicals, metals, energy, automotive, paper and packaging industries.
Provided environmental counseling and advice on the negotiation of various master agreements and rail improvement matters to facilitate development of California’s high-speed rail service.
Representing Lennar, a Fortune 500 construction and real estate company, and a number of its subsidiaries in connection with environmental litigation matters related to its redevelopment of the Hunters Point Shipyard in San Francisco, California.
Counseled Nu-West Industries in connection with the investigation and remediation of former phosphate mine sites in Southeast Idaho.
Advised the government of Puerto Rico on a federal Clean Air Act compliance matter relating to the attainment of air quality standards in the San Juan metro and Salinas-Guayama areas.
Providing environmental counseling in connection with the redevelopment of Aloha Stadium, Hawaii’s premier sports and entertainment facility. The redevelopment will include construction of a new stadium and creation of 2.5 million square feet of adjacent mixed-use ancillary development.
Representing Vantage Airport Group in its redevelopment projects at New York’s LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International Airports. We have played a key role in evaluating and managing environmental risks on these projects and negotiating environmental provisions of multiple project documents, including leases, subleases, design-build agreements, and financing documents.
Defending multinational retail corporation Walmart in a statewide lawsuit filed by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, and various California district attorneys alleging violations of California’s Hazardous Waste Control Law, Medical Waste Management Act, and Consumer Records Act. The matter is currently pending in Alameda County Superior Court.
Top tier nationally for Environmental Law & Environmental Litigation
—US News & World Report/Best Lawyers’ “Best Law Firms” survey (2024)
“O'Melveny & Myers LLP‘s environmental and natural resources practice represents clients in a variety of environmental transactions, including complex infrastructure projects, before all major environmental review agencies at the state and federal level, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. The team is also active in advising on environmental litigation and regulatory proceedings.”
—Legal 500 US (2024)
“A strong team possessing vast experience in documentation advice as well as health and safety counsel on significant transactions, financings and restructurings…. Relied upon by private equity firms to ensure all environmental risk and compliance requirements are properly assessed.”
—Chambers USA
“Besides providing environmental due diligence examinations, the team is also sought after for its proficiency in pre-development assessments, environmental compliance reviews, permitting applications and agency approvals.”
—The Legal 500 US
California offices top ranked for environmental litigation.
—Benchmark Litigation (2023)