Rich Fil practices in our Providence and Hartford offices, where his environmental practice is focused on the voluntary investigation, remediation, and redevelopment of affected property and the negotiation of transactional documents. He also counsels clients on federal and state enforcement actions and litigation involving impacted sites. He has spoken and written on a number of environmental issues to diverse audiences. Mr. Fil has served as environmental counsel on a wide variety of transactions, negotiating environmental provisions of agreements, managing due diligence, and providing advice on remediation alternatives and strategies. His experience includes overseeing contaminated site investigations and cleanups under various state environmental programs, including Connecticut's Property Transfer Act, Pennsylvania's Act 2, and Michigan's Baseline Environmental Assessment program. He has also managed fire and explosion investigations and has been involved in nuclear decommissioning and radioactive decontamination and compliance projects. Mr. Fil's litigation experience includes defending government enforcement actions, initiating and defending private party actions, and preparing and deposing expert witnesses. In conjunction with his environmental practice, Mr. Fil has considerable experience in federal regulatory interpretation (including the EPA, NRC, and DOT), overseeing compliance audits and making voluntary disclosures, managing control groups, and performing crisis management training and oversight. Mr. Fil has substantial knowledge of state regulatory standards and procedures, having worked seven years at the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). While at DEP, he served as legislative liaison for the Water Management Bureau, senior environmental analyst in the groundwater program, and assistant to the state Board of Examiners of Environmental Professionals. Professional Associations - Rhode Island Bar Association, 2008 to present, Environmental and Energy Law Committee, 2009 to present - American Bar Association, 1994 to present - American Bankruptcy Institute - American Nuclear Society, Environmental Sciences Division, Executive Committee - Rhode Island Society of Environmental Professionals - Turnaround Management Association, Northeast and Connecticut Chapters - Rhode Island Society of Environmental Professionals, Board of Directors Community Involvement - Westerly Land Trust, Board Member and Urban Committee Member Experience - Representation of a gas utility in evaluating site conditions and cleanup obligations related to former manufactured gas plant facilities. - Representation of an electric power company in a matter where a state environmental agency threatened to prohibit use of the client's ash of their generation facility for daily landfill cover. Received a favorable outcome. A contrary outcome would have cost millions of dollars and likely threatened the viability of the facility. - Representation of a manufacturer of technology products and provider of support services for the aerospace and building industries worldwide at a National Priorities List site where state and federal agencies sought to compel remediation over a 10-square-mile area, including areas never owned or operated by our client. Negotiated a consent decree limiting the work to performing an investigation only and only for our client's property. Significantly limited additional groundwater work through the state regulatory program. - Representation of an elevator manufacturer in case involving a shipment of elevator buttons through Mexico that triggered radiation detectors at the border and were quarantined by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The buttons were manufactured in France, and the steel used was determined to be contaminated with Co-60. Robinson & Cole assisted its client in engaging a health physicist, evaluating thousands of buttons in storage in Arizona and Connecticut for potential radioactivity, determining relevant lots affected, tracking down and replacing buttons from relevant lots that had already been shipped throughout the country and internationally to distribution centers and customers, and ensuring proper disposal of the affected buttons at a nuclear waste facility. We also evaluated potential state and federal reporting obligations and prepared documentation for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and state environmental agencies. - Representation of a manufacturer of technology products and provider of support services for the aerospace and building industries worldwide in evaluating licensing, handling, and disposal requirements related to products containing tritium. - Representation of a manufacturer of technology products and provider of support services for the aerospace and building industries worldwide in evaluating local, state, and federal requirements related to the handling and disposal of products containing Kr-85. - Representation of a manufacturer of technology products and provider of support services for the aerospace and building industries worldwide in investigating and reporting the loss of radioactive sources. - Counseled client on environmental aspects of transactions involving shopping centers in several states. - Counseled municipality on agreements and due diligence for a public-private mixed-use development. - Counseled client on groundwater issues for a commercial nuclear power plant undergoing decommissioning. - Counseled client on environmental issues related to its acquisition of a large fuel oil distributor involving over 40 sites in four states. Business Litigation - Represented a manufacturing company in an environmental enforcement action involving claims of illegal storage and disposal of hazardous waste. Publications & Presentations Articles - "Bankruptcy Updates" published in ABA's Environmental Transactions and Brownfields Newsletter - "Addressing Environmental Issues in Turnarounds and Bankruptcies," coauthored with Pamela Elkow (1/7/2008), at meeting of the Connecticut Chapter of the Turnaround Management Association - "Environmental Risk Management in Real Estate Lending: A Time to Reassess How to Avoid or Better Manage Toxic Assets," coauthored with Pamela K. Elkow and Norman H. Roos (Spring 2009), published in The Abstract, American College of Mortgage Attorneys Presentations - "Commercial Real Estate Transactions: The New Economic Climate" (6/16/2011) presented at the 2011 Rhode Island Bar Association Annual Meeting; Carla M. Moynihan also spoke in the panel discussion. - "Performing Environmental Health and Safety Audits: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?" copresented with Pamela K. Elkow (5/3/2011) at Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries' Safety & Environmental Council Conference - "Key Issues and Strategies for Environmental Due Diligence and Contractual Provisions" (10/26/2010) presented at Robinson & Cole webinar entitled The Times -They Are a-Changin': Selected Real Estate Topics Reflecting Current Economic and Green Climate Conditions, Providence, Rhode Island - "Connecticut's Significant Environmental Hazard Statute and Its Reporting Requirements," copresented with Megan Baroni (1/3/2007) at Connecticut Environmental Forum, Wethersfield, CT - "Environmental Considerations for Real Estate and Commercial Transactions" (6/28/2005 and 9/27/2005) presented at Lorman conferences in Hartford and Stamford, Connecticut - "Life After Decommissioning - A Legal Overview" (11/15/2004) presented at American Nuclear Society Winter Meeting, Washington, D.C. - "Brownfields Redevelopment - What, Why and How?" (7/1/2004) presented at Argonne National Laboratory Decommissioning Training Course, Albuquerque, NM - "State Cleanup Standards for Decommissioning" (7/1/2004) presented at Argonne National Laboratory Decommissioning Training Course, Albuquerque, NM - "Security and Crisis Management - Preparation and Response" (4/28/2004) presented at Connecticut Business & Industry Association Annual Meeting, Southington, CT - "Investigation and Remediation of Non-Radiological Environmental Contamination" (3/1/2004) presented at Argonne National Laboratory Decommissioning Training Course, Las Vegas, NV - "Considerations for Transactions with Environmental Issues," copresented with Pamela K. Elkow (10/22/2003) at Orange, CT - "Environmental Issues and Strategies for Real Estate Transactions," copresented with Earl W. Phillips, Jr., Stuart R. Deans, Pamela K. Elkow (10/14/2003) at New York County Bar Association - "Case Law Updates on Lender and Fiduciary Liability" (6/1/2002) presented at Environmental Bankers Association, St. Paul, MN - "Land Use Controls" (6/2001) presented at a Connecticut Bar Association (CBA) Annual Meeting - "Transactional Aspects of Environmental Law" (4/2001) presented at the University of Connecticut School of Law - "Institutional Controls" (1/2001) presented at an Environmental Bankers Association event - "The Sulfur Crisis of 2000" (1/2001) presented at the New England Fuel Institute (NEFI) Annual Meeting - "Environmental Law for Trust and Estates Practitioners" (12/1999) presented at a CBA seminar News 2.03.12, Environmental Partner Elected to Rhode Island Society of Environmental Professionals Board 9.21.11, Presentation on Environmental Health and Safety Audits Noted in Scrap Magazine 6.18.11, Robinson & Cole Attorneys Participate in Rhode Island Bar Association Annual Meeting 5.23.11, Environmental Attorneys Present on Environmental Health and Safety Audits 12.17.10, Attorneys Reelected to Connecticut Chapter Board 4.30.10, Robinson & Cole LandLaw Lawyer Reappointed to Executive Committee of the American Nuclear Society 3.02.10, Robinson & Cole Attorney Reelected to Board of Directors of Westerly Land Trust 2.02.10, Robinson & Cole Attorneys Elected to Board of Directors of Turnaround Management Association's Connecticut Chapter 10.29.09, Robinson & Cole Attorney Authors Article on Debtors with Environmental Liabilities 2.06.09, Robinson & Cole Partner Elected to Board of Directors of the CTTMA (Also at Providence, Rhode Island Office) |