Mr. Davis conducts environmental reviews under NEPA and counsels clients on environmental regulations; represents government and private entities regarding redevelopment efforts at Ground Zero and along the Anacostia River in Washington, DC; will work out of Venable's Washington and New York offices
WASHINGTON, DC/ NEW YORK (May 21, 2008) - Venable LLP announced that noted environmental lawyer Michael C. Davis has joined the firm as a partner in its Environmental Group. With a broad practice that spans regulatory counsel, litigation, real estate transactions and insurance coverage, Mr. Davis will work out of the firm's New York and Washington, DC offices. He was formerly a partner in the Washington, DC office of Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP.
Mr. Davis, 39, regularly represents government and business entities across the country on environmental matters in redevelopment and construction efforts, contract negotiations and brownfield projects. He also counsels clients on federal and state environmental regulation, including review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
Mr. Davis serves as counsel to government and private entities in their ongoing redevelopment efforts at large urban redevelopment projects, including at the former World Trade Center site in New York City.
An expert in liability risk transfer, Mr. Davis represents businesses in obtaining environmental insurance coverage in connection with toxic torts, hazardous materials transfer and demolition/deconstruction. He also counsels developers and other businesses named as PRPs, or potentially responsible parties, facing environmental liability under Superfund legislation. He frequently negotiates indemnification contracts covering environmental liabilities at various cleanup sites. Mr. Davis has represented entities in connection with more than 400,000,000 issued or transferred liabilities.
"Mike has an exceptionally well-rounded environmental practice that greatly enhances our existing Environmental Group of more than 20 lawyers," said Judson Starr, Co-Chair of Venable's Environmental Group. "Mike's mastery of key federal and state regulations regarding the handling of complex real estate transactions involving environmental disputes, and the services he provides to leading developers, corporations and government clients on cutting-edge environmental matters well suits our clients' needs."
Mr. Starr noted his new partner's command of sustainability issues. "So many of our clients are facing a new generation of laws governing relating to environmental conservation, as well as new standards for urban planning and development," he said. "Mike's expertise in regulatory compliance, insurance coverage, and brownfield laws will be a great asset to our clients dealing with this complex and ever-changing legal landscape."
Mr. Davis has led a number of other noteworthy environmental matters. He served as lead counsel for a Fortune 500 company in litigation concerning alleged CERCLA violations and in hazardous materials transportation incidents investigated by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board. He represents the District of Columbia in the Poplar Point project, a redevelopment along the Anacostia River. He also filed an amicus brief before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of four former Administrators of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the case Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency, 127 S.Ct. 1438 (2007).
Mr. Davis has frequently authored articles on environmental and brownfield laws and has lectured on environmental regulatory topics at the American Law Institute-American Bar Association. In April, he was a speaker at the Urban Land Institute Conference entitled "Developing and Investing Green: Creating Value through Sustainability."
"Venable has a stellar reputation in environmental defense and corporate investigations," Mr. Davis commented, referencing Mr. Starr and his partner, Jerry Block, both former Chiefs of the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Justice Department.
"I'm looking forward to contributing my particular specialties to the environmental practice and to helping the firm's clients contend with changing environmental regulations and laws," he continued. "In addition to my ongoing work in the DC area, I hope to help build greater recognition for Venable's environmental group in New York and elsewhere. In particular, I expect to spend considerable time in New York working on redevelopment projects in Lower Manhattan and in Long Island City."
Prior to Carter Ledyard, Mr. Davis was a partner with the law firm of Wilcox & Savage, P.C. in Norfolk, Va. He received his J.D. in 1993 from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was a member of the University of Chicago Law Review, and his B.A., with Distinction, in 1990 from Cornell University.
One of the American Lawyer’s top 100 law firms, Venable LLP has attorneys practicing in all areas of corporate and business law, complex litigation, intellectual property and government affairs. Venable serves corporate, institutional, governmental, nonprofit and individual clients throughout the U.S. and around the world from its headquarters in Washington, D.C. and offices in California, Maryland, New York and Virginia.