Holland & Hart LLP

Holland & Hart is a top-listed environmental and natural resources firm in the country, according to Best Lawyers in America®. Clients rely on us for environmental litigation needs ranging from toxic tort suits to government enforcement actions to royalty litigation. Our practice spans the country and offers the breadth and depth to handle virtually any environmental litigation matter.

We have experience with the key federal and state environmental programs, particularly those relevant to natural resources development. Our attorneys represent clients in environmental matters throughout the United States. We defend our clients' interests at all stages of development, exploration and production, in all varieties of enforcement actions, from civil suit to criminal prosecution.

Our attorneys are involved in cutting-edge enforcement actions, many of which are of national significance. Holland & Hart played a key role in the case of Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation v. EPA, decided by the United States Supreme Court in 2004, which concerned the EPA's authority to overrule environmental decisions made by state agencies.

NEPA and Endangered Species Act
Private parties often use NEPA or the Endangered Species Act to challenge development of natural resources, construction projects and infrastructure improvements. Holland & Hart has successfully defended energy companies, construction contractors, utilities and municipalities against such challenges. Our attorneys have successfully defended NEPA and Endangered Species Act cases throughout the Rocky Mountain region in order to protect oil, gas and geothermal development, highway projects and other large business ventures.

CERCLA, RCRA and Superfund
Cases filed under CERCLA and RCRA, or for Superfund liabilities, are complex, protracted and difficult. Clients turn to Holland & Hart to handle these cases based on our experience and resources. We have been involved, and remain involved, in large cost-recovery and damages actions brought under these statutes. Our attorneys are providing ongoing defense in CERCLA and RCRA actions, and recently served as lead defense trial counsel in a Superfund case in which a state sought more than $700 million in damages.

Air
Our firm has extensive experience with federal and state air quality regulations. As a result, we have successfully defended clients against challenges brought both by the government and private parties under the Clean Air Act and its state-law counterparts. Such challenges can arise at any stage of development—from permitting to decommissioning—and Holland & Hart has the experience and resources to mount a vigorous defense wherever and whenever the challenge presents itself.

Water
Holland & Hart has a proven record of defending our clients against claims brought under the Clean Water Act and similar state regulations. These cases come from a variety of actors (government and private-party) in a variety of locations throughout the Rockies. Whether resolving controversial enforcement actions directed to stormwater drainage or reserve pits, or successfully defending tank farms against EPA enforcement actions, Holland & Hart has been on the cutting edge of high-profile and controversial clean-water actions.

Environmental Insurance Litigation
Environmental liabilities can be covered by insurance under certain circumstances. For decades, we have successfully represented policyholders in obtaining insurance coverage for such liabilities. Our litigation experience, along with the support of our in-house jury consultants and graphics personnel at Persuasion Strategies, makes Holland & Hart one of the nation's leading law firms in this area.

Emergency Response, Tort Defense and Environmental Crimes
We provide on-site emergency response representation within hours of a major accident or environmental spill. We have a team of local lawyers in each state trained on evidence preservation, investigation, regulatory agency response and investigation. We also provide emergency response training to clients at field, regional, and headquarter levels.

When a tort suit is filed, Holland & Hart is ready for the defense. Our attorneys have defended clients against all manner of tort actions, from wrongful death and premises liability actions to complex toxic tort suits.

Although rare, the government will file criminal charges for alleged environmental crimes. Holland & Hart has the experience and resources to defend its clients in criminal prosecutions brought under RCRA, the Clean Water Act, and other environmental statutes.

Holland & Hart's Statement of Commitment to Diversity
We are proud of our tradition of fostering and maintaining a work environment in which the diversity of each individual is valued and celebrated. We believe that the contributions of each individual are essential to our continued growth and to our ultimate goal of providing excellent quality legal services to our clients, with greater creativity and innovation. We are committed to taking full advantage of the rich backgrounds and abilities of our people and to promoting a greater diversity whenever and wherever possible.

Diversity Pledge
Holland & Hart is committed to promoting diversity by:

• Making every possible effort to recruit, hire, retain, and promote diverse persons at all levels of employment.
• Promoting greater sensitivity to the value of racial, ethnic and other forms of diversity, through diversity and sensitivity coaching or training for law firm members.
• Inviting to partnership diverse attorneys who meet the requisite criteria.

Diversity Initiatives
The following are additional examples of our commitment and efforts toward supporting and achieving diversity:

• We make a conscious effort to ensure that women and diverse attorneys are included as voting members of our committees of importance within the firm.
• We work closely with law school deans and placement directors in an effort to identify women and diverse law students who are interested in working at Holland & Hart.
• Holland & Hart offers medical and other benefits to partners of gay and lesbian employees on the same terms as it does to spouses of employees.
• We created an Indian Law Practice Group and actively recruited Native American law students and lateral hires.
• Each year we contribute to such scholarship funds as the Colorado Native American Indian Scholarship Fund, the Sam Cary Scholarship Endowment Fund, the Colorado Asian American Bar Scholarship Fund, the Colorado Hispanic Bar Scholarship Fund, and the Colorado Women's Bar Association Scholarship Fund.
• In partnership with the University of Idaho School of Law, we sponsor a "Law by Day, Jazz by Night" each year for undergraduate minority students who have an interest in law.
• We took a leadership role in organizing and supporting the Colorado Pledge Group's Minority First Year Law Student Summer Clerk Program. Through this program, law firms agreed to add at least one diverse first year law student to their summer clerk program.
• We were involved in the creation of the Cross-Professional Business Networking Group, where diverse attorneys in our community can meet and network with non-attorney professionals of color. We view this as a way to help diverse attorneys increase their business development possibilities.

For more information regarding Holland & Hart's commitment to diversity, please contact Peter Houtsma at (303) 295-8259.