Jay C. Johnson
Jay has briefed and argued dozens of cases in trial and appellate courts around the country. One of his appellate briefs is featured in Level Up Your Legal Writing by Joe Regalia (Aspen Publishing, 2024). There, the author describes Jay’s brief as “a master class” that “hook[s] you from the first words” by using “storytelling details” that “tug on some heartstrings” and “make you care about what happens” to his client. Jay uses the same persuasive writing skills for all his clients.
Jay has experience with a broad spectrum of federal and state environmental laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Clean Water Act, the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), and their state analogues. He has also helped his clients win approvals under a range of substantive federal statutes employed by federal agencies like the Surface Transportation Board (STB), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). More broadly, Jay’s litigation experience includes cases brought under the federal Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and similar state statutes, as well as many other laws governing federal and state agency action.
Experience
Representative Matters
- Won U.S. Supreme Court review in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, a landmark decision addressing the contours of NEPA review
- Briefed and argued four cases before the Minnesota Supreme Court and many other cases in the Minnesota Court of Appeals on behalf of the state’s first copper-nickel mine
- Co-authored an amicus brief for the U.S. Supreme Court addressing the scope of federal wetland jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act
- Briefed and argued multiple petitions for review of Surface Transportation Board decisions in federal appellate courts
- Filed briefs before the Surface Transportation Board successfully arguing for board jurisdiction over a high-speed passenger rail line under the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) Termination Act
- Briefed and argued successful motions to dismiss for lack of standing four challenges to a U.S. Forest land exchange decision
- Represented clients in a NEPA environmental review of a major rail merger proceeding before the Surface Transportation Board
- Guided a successful environmental review and permitting process for a cross-border high-voltage transmission line
- Briefed and argued a case that resulted in dismissal of claims under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA)
- Represented clients who successfully won summary judgment for a high-occupancy toll-lane interstate highway project
- Co-authored an amicus brief for the U.S. Supreme Court addressing the Antiquities Act
- Represented a client in federal trial and appellate courts in a Commerce Clause challenge to state agency permit denials
- Represented a client in federal trial and appellate courts defending U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Clean Water Act permits for a freight rail line extension
Insights
Credentials
Education
- J.D. University of Virginia School of Law 2001
- Member, Virginia Law Review
- Order of the Coif
- B.A. summa cum laude Vanderbilt University 1998
Bar Admissions
- District of Columbia
- Virginia
- Minnesota
Court Admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia
Clerk Experience
- The Honorable David A. Nelson U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
Professional Memberships and Activities
- Member, American Bar Association
- Member, Association of Transportation Law Professionals
- Member, Virginia Bar Association
- Appellate Practice Section
- Administrative Law Section
- Past member, Board of Directors, Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project (DV LEAP)
Recognition
- Super Lawyers, Washington, DC, 2014 – 2016
- Pro Bono Team of the Year Award, Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project (DV LEAP), 2021
Community
Pro Bono
- Briefed statutory custody and domestic violence issues on behalf of a pro bono client in the Wisconsin Court of Appeals