JIM NOLES' practice is devoted exclusively to issues of environmental law, regulation, and litigation in Alabama. Working out of the firm's Birmingham office, his practice focuses on such matters and topics as landfill permitting and regulation, wetlands regulation and associated Section 404 permitting, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (a.k.a., CERCLA or "Superfund"), endangered species, the redevelopment of brownfields, environmental justice, and other aspects of environmental law related to real estate, construction, industrial development, and corporate transactions. In recognition of his work in these areas, Jim's peers selected him for inclusion in the 2011 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.
In addition to the foregoing areas of expertise, Jim has also carved out a niche both within Balch & Bingham and within Alabama's legal community with respect to legal issues associated with the regulation and protection of historical and cultural resources. He possesses particular expertise regarding the federal National Historic Preservation Act ("NHPA") and the procedures associated with Section 106, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, and the regulatory processes and requirements of the Alabama Historical Commission and various federal agencies.
Beyond the firm, Jim has taught courses at the University of Alabama at Birmingham on the law of historical and cultural resources in the school's anthropology department as an adjunct professor. He has also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Alabama's School of Law.
Jim's other civic and community activities include chairing the Board of Directors of the Alabama Humanities Foundation. He also serves on the Boards of Directors of the Alabama Bench and Bar Historical Society and the Kiwanis Club of Birmingham. He also coordinates the Birmingham Bar Association's Young Lawyer Section Veterans Oral History Project (an official partner of the Library of Congress), serves on the Birmingham Bar Association's Scholarship Committee, serves on the University of Alabama at Birmingham English Department Advisory Committee, and was one of the initial founding trustees of the Birmingham-Jefferson County History Museum. In 2005, he was named by the Birmingham Business Journal as one of the city's "Top 40 Under 40."
In addition to his legal work, Mr. Noles is a published author. His newest book is Mighty by Sacrifice: The Destruction of an American Bomber Squadron, August 29, 1944 (Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 2009). Other recent books include A Pocketful of History: Four Hundred years of America- One State Quarter at a Time (Boston: Da Capo Press, 2008) and Twenty-Three Minutes to Eternity: The Final Voyage of the Escort Carrier USS Liscome Bay(Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 2004). His work has also appeared in numerous newspapers, magazines, and journals, to include the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Preservation, Urban Land, Alabama Heritage, The Journal of the Legal Profession, Smithsonian Air & Space, The Cumberland Law Review and Natural Resources & Environment.
Prior to attending law school and joining Balch & Bingham, Mr. Noles served as an officer and aviator in the United States Army at Fort Rucker, Alabama, and Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Representative Experience
· Alabama Rivers Alliance v. United States Army Corps of Engineers, et al.,United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Civil Action No 5:07-CV-1609-IPJ (March 31, 2009) (successfully represented permit holder intervening in lawsuit to defend CWA section 404 permit). (Click here for Memorandum Order)
· Greif Bothers Site, Cullman, Alabama (Site Number 461-9496) (represented city in acquisition of former industrial site as location for new police station).
· Murdock v. Alabama Department of Environmental Management, et al., Circuit Court of Montgomery County, CV-03-1166 (June 6, 2008) (successfully represented permit holder intervening in lawsuit to defend landfill permit).
· Department of the Army Permit SAM-2007-635-DMY (Oct. 12 2007) (coordinated cultural resource assessment and mitigation efforts in support of permitting of 3,700-acre steel mill facility in southern Alabama).
· Dunham Site, Birmingham, Alabama (Site Number 461-9450) (June 8, 2007) (represented property purchaser in the course of assessing and placing former industrial site into ADEM's Voluntary Cleanup Program).
· D'Olive Bay Restoration and Preservation Committee, Inc. v. United States Army Corps of Engineers (United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama, Civil Action No. 05-0561-BH-D) (March 15, 2007) (represented developer in defense of CWA section 404 permit issued by Corps).
· ADEM Permit 58-01R (December 29, 2006) (assisted landfill operators in obtaining 320-acre expansion to landfill in St. Clair County, Alabama).
· Department of the Army Permit SAM-2006-00912-U (November 9, 2006) (coordinated efforts by county to complete NEPA process and obtain permit to construct drinking water reservoir in north central Alabama).
· Bay Area Responsible Growth Alliance v. United States Army Corps of Engineers, and Cypress/Spanish Fort I, L.P. (intervenor) (United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama, Civil Action No. 05-423) (July 19, 2005) (represented developer in defense of CWA section 404 permit issued by Corps of Engineers).
· Stockham Valves & Fittings Site, Birmingham, Alabama (Site Number 461-9315) (represented property owner in the course of assessing and placing former industrial facility into ADEM's Voluntary Cleanup Program and its subsequent sale to a third party).
· Department of the Army Permit AL01-02158-H (September 2, 2004) (represented landowner in completing NEPA process and obtaining a CWA section 404 permit necessary to construct a 1,050-acre reservoir in northwestern Alabama).
· Alabama Disposal Solutions-Landfill, L.L.C. v. Town of Lowndesboro, 837 So.2d 292 (Ala. Civ.App. 2002) (filed amicus curiae brief on behalf of Business Council of Alabama, Association of County Commissions of Alabama, Alabama Chemical Association, Alabama Forestry Association, and Alabama Pulp and Paper Council opposing moratorium on solid waste permitting in Alabama).
· Doug Palmer and the Friends of Big Canoe Creek, Petitioners, v. Alabama Department of Environmental Management, and McCartney Construction Company, Inc., Intervenor, Alabama Environmental Management Commission Docket No. 99-25 (December 5, 2000) (defended issuance of an NPDES permit (AL0072214) to McCartney Construction Company for its quarry in St. Clair County, Alabama).
· Wild Alabama and Wild South, Petitioners, v. Alabama Department of Environmental Management, Respondent, and Alabama Power Company, Intervenor, Alabama Environmental Management Commission, Docket No. 99-22 (February 15, 2000) (defended issuance of Air Permit 503-1001-X006 to Alabama Power for the construction and operation of four natural gas-fired combined-cycle units at Alabama Power's Barry Steam Plant in Mobile County, Alabama).
· Karen Bryan and Hobson Bryan v. United States Army Corps of Engineers, Tuscaloosa County, et al. (United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Civil Action No. CV-00-PWG-0064-W) (January 10, 2000) (represented county in defense of CWA section 404 permit issued by Corps of Engineers).
Professional Activities
· American Bar Association
· Alabama State Bar
· Birmingham Bar Association
· Alabama Historical Association
· Listed in The Best Lawyers in America, 2011-12
Community Relations
· Board of Directors, Kiwanis Club of Birmingham
· Chairman, Board of Directors, The Alabama Humanities Foundation
· Board of Directors, Alabama Bench and Bar Historical Society
· Coordinator, America Veterans Oral History Project
· Member, University of Alabama at Birmingham's Department of English Advisory Committee
News
November 08, 2011, Balch Partner Jim Noles to Speak at Veterans Day Ceremony
September 26, 2011, Balch Supports Alabama Humanities Foundation Annual Awards Luncheon
January 07, 2011, Jim Noles Elected Chairman of Alabama Humanities Foundation Board of Directors
March 25, 2010, Balch & Bingham Hosts Replica of Historic Monroe County Courthouse
August 10, 2009, University of Alabama Press Publishes Partner's New Book
April 23, 2009, Jim Noles Debates in Solid Waste Forum
April 21, 2009, Encyclopedia of Alabama Earns Library Journal Accolades
April 02, 2009, Federal Judge Upholds Duck River Permit
September 02, 2008, On-Line Encyclopedia of Alabama to Debut September 15
July 30, 2008, Original Duck River judge reinstated
June 21, 2008, Balch & Bingham Attorney to Appear on CSpan2's BookTV
May 09, 2008, Jim Noles to Speak on "Environmental Issues Confronting Alabama's City and County Governments"
May 07, 2008, Author Jim Noles Featured in Taping
April 14, 2008, Balch & Bingham Partner to Debut New Book at Alabama Book Festival
March 12, 2008, Kirkus Reviews Lauds Balch & Bingham Partner's Latest Book
September 13, 2007, St. Clair Commission OKs expanding Wattsville landfill
August 15, 2007, AHF Welcomes Noles to Board of Directors
July 18, 2005, Top 40 Under 40: Jim Noles, Jr.
April 17, 2005, From Brownfields to Greenfields
July 20, 2001, Picture Book Chronicles Alabama Power History
Publications
Winter 2009, "Confederate Twilight: The Fall of Fort Blakely". Alabama Heritage
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
April 2009, Is "Recovered" Really Recovered?: "Recovered" Species Under The Endangered Species Act. Cumberland Law Review, Vol 39:2
James L. Noles, Jr.
March/April 2009, "Generation U". Thicket
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
November 25, 2008, Environmental Enforcement Priorities and Personalities in President Barack Obama's Pending Administration: Prognostications and Possibilities.
James L. Noles, Jr.
Spring 2007, "Past Perfect: With Ecological Restoration, La Florida May Live Again". Sweet Tea Journal
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
February 2007, "Pumping Green Cash Into Brownfields". Business Alabama
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
December 2006, "I'm Dreaming of a Green Christmas". The Birmingham News
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
July 2005, "Biscuits Whet Montgomery, Alabama's Appetite for Urban Renewal". Urban Land, (July 2005), 81
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
2005, "War on Terror: Little Room for CERCLA's 'Act of War' Exclusion". Natural Resources & Environment, No. 1 (2005), 74, Vol. 20
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
December 2004, "Rough Times and Fine Art". Portico, (December 2004), 41
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
Summer 2003, "Judge Enjoys Testing of Naval Surveillance Technology". Natural Resources & Environment, (Summer 2003), 31
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
2002, "Can Historic Preservation Coexist with Protections for Religious Land Use?". Natural Resources & Environment, No. 2 (2002), 89, Vol. 17
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
Nov./Dec. 2001, "Southern Discomfort: Flap Over Minor Changes to Capitol". Preservation, (Nov./Dec. 2001), 11
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
June 2001, "Putting Green Back Into Brownfields". Birmingham Business Journal
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
2001, "A New Opportunity for Old Lighthouses". Cultural Resource Management, (No. 2 - 2001), 39
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
August 18, 2000, "Historic Preservation Act's Role in Real Estate". Birmingham Business Journal
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
2000, "Cases Illuminate CERCLA's Secured Creditor and Fiduciary Protection Provisions". Natural Resources & Environment, No. 3 (2000), 205, Vol. 14
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
1999, "This Old Swamp: The Unlikely Connection Between Wetlands and Historic Preservation". The Enlaw, (1999), 4, Vol. 8
James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
1997, "Emerging Environmental Issues in Alabama". The Enlaw, 1, Vol. 6
Robert P. Fowler (author), James L. Noles, Jr. (author)
Speaking Engagements
March 31, 2009, "The United States Mint and the 50 State Quarter Program"
May 9, 2008, "Environmental Issues Confronting Alabama's City and County Governments"
July 5, 2007, "The Forgotten Flattop: The U.S.S. Liscome Bay"
May 12, 2006, "Legal Issues Associated With Historical and Cultural Resources in Alabama's Communities"
April 09, 2005, "A Ship Called Birmingham"
January 11, 2005, "NEPA and NHPA Issues Associated With Wetlands Permitting"
November 06, 2003, "Alabama Brownfields Program: Legal Perspectives"
October 09, 2003, "The Natural Environment Policy Act: Recent Developments"
March 08, 2003, "The Business of Writing" (panel moderator)