CEQA & NEPA

We help clients with large development and infrastructure projects navigate the maze of state and federal environmental regulations.  We work together, with their outside consultants, to devise regulatory compliance strategies and defend against judicial challenges to keep projects moving forward.

We possess an in-depth understanding of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) as well as other environmental statutes.  This insight enables us to draft comprehensive planning and environmental documents, including state and federal environmental impact reports and statements, that avoid pitfalls and survive court challenges.

When challenges do arise, we have an exceptional reputation for successfully defending major land use projects facing opposition from local groups and/or regional, state and federal agencies.  We have successfully defended numerous development and infrastructure projects against state and federal environmental challenges.  We are especially proud of our established track record of devising CEQA and NEPA compliance strategies and approaches to documentation that avoid litigation.  We are equally proud of our ability to devise litigation strategies that allow the timely and on-budget delivery of complex, large-scale development projects.

The successful defense of environmental documents often depends on pre-litigation counseling.  As such, our land use and environmental attorneys focus on compliance and litigation strategies that facilitate timely and cost-effective completion of the environmental regulatory process.

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NEPA Rewrite

Following are links to our full series of eAlerts analyzing revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulation.

These eAlerts focus on past and ongoing changes to once long-standing NEPA regulations. Included in these eAlerts are summaries of changes made under the Trump administration and finalized in July 2020, as well as changes being proposed under the Biden administration. Changes to NEPA implementation regulations affect a wide variety of activities, including construction and operation of transportation, energy and water infrastructure and a vast range of additional public and private development projects.

NEPA Rules Rewrite: 2021

Vol. 1 Déjà Vu All Over Again

Vol. 2 Flexibility for Federal Agencies

Vol. 3 It’s “Back to the Future” With the Proposed NEPA Regulations

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NEPA Rules Rewrite: 2020

Vol. 1 What’s in a Name?

Vol. 2 Initiation of the Environmental Impact Statement Process

Vol. 3 Categorical Exclusions and Environmental Assessments

Vol. 4 Content of NEPA Documents Under New CEQ Rules

Vol. 5 Public Involvement Process

Vol. 6 Revised NEPA Regulations Designed to Influence Litigation

Vol. 7 Potential Impacts on Federal-State Environmental Reviews & Studies

Vol. 8 What Else Do You Need to Know?

Vol. 9 What's Next?