Environmental Health and Safety

Managing the demands of environmental and health regulations is important to many businesses – particularly in an era when conditions can change in an instant, legislation evolves quickly and lawsuits continue to climb. Knowing the regulatory process and understanding current law help to promote the proper balance of business and environmental interests.

We assist clients in all aspects of environmental, health & safety law and regulation, from permitting and regulatory compliance to transactions and litigation, at both the State and Federal levels. We also maintain a presence in the legislative and regulatory arenas, where we advocate positions of importance to our clients.

Primary Services:

• Environmental audits
  
• Remediation technologies
• Defense of regulatory enforcement proceedings
• Transactional issues
  
• Penalty negotiation and enforcement strategies
  
• Legislative advocacy
• Superfund litigation and other cost recovery actions
• Defense of environmental and toxic tort litigation
• Negotiating permit conditions
  
• Private party settlements
  
• Obtaining regulatory clarifications
  
• Due diligence investigations

Commercial Transactions, Audits and Due Diligence Investigations:
Our environmental law group routinely assists clients in reviewing environmental audits and conducting due diligence investigations in connection with mergers and acquisitions. We regularly advise clients on environmental warranties, indemnity agreements and other environmental issues attendant to commercial transactions.

Environmental Litigation:
Smith Anderson has represented companies in some large Superfund cost recovery actions filed in North Carolina by the Environmental Protection Agency. We have also represented private parties in major litigation affecting North Carolina wetlands, involving property contaminated by hazardous substances, and in toxic tort litigation. We regularly defend our clients in regulatory enforcement proceedings.

Legislative Advocacy:
We routinely monitor and analyze legislation for our clients, network with State employees and legislators, and participate in government meetings and hearings. In so doing, our firm helps clients stay informed of environmental issues before and after they arise and assist clients in their early resolution.

Additional Services:
We publish occasional newsletters to assist our clients in keeping abreast of regulatory changes and judicial interpretations. We also regularly advise clients of the activities of various committees (both private and governmental) charged with monitoring regulatory issues. Smith Anderson also offers experience in real estate, corporate, mergers and acquisitions, legislative advocacy and litigation matters.

Our Clients:
Our clients include regional, national and multinational corporations, utilities, manufacturers, banks, petroleum marketers, environmental technology companies, waste haulers and trade associations.

Our Lawyers:
Our lawyers are active in the Environmental Law Sections of the American and North Carolina Bar Associations and present at business seminars and continuing legal education programs. Our group includes lawyers who have prior experience as governmental regulators and who previously worked in the environmental, health & safety practices of some of the largest law firms in the United States.