NEPA Implementation After the Marin Audubon Society Ruling: Enforceability of CEQ Rules, Impact of New Administration

Mr. Cruden provides strategic counsel on high-stakes environmental and natural resources litigation, civil and criminal enforcement, and compliance. Working with clients makes the practice of law worthy and valuable to him as they advance strategic needs while protecting human health and the environment.  Mr. Cruden is the Past Senate-confirmed Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, U.S. Department of Justice, Past President of Environmental Law Institute, Past President of American College of Environmental Lawyers, and Past Chair of ABA Section on Environment, Energy, and Resources.

Mr. Rusk specializes in project permitting, compliance and litigation involving endangered species, wetlands and water quality, and related environmental review requirements. He guides landowners and developers through the complex permitting and compliance processes under federal and state natural resources laws, including the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act, the California Fish and Wildlife Code and Porter-Cologne Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and the California Environmental Quality Act. He also represents clients in litigation defending federal and state permits against challenge by project opponents, and in suits challenging arbitrary agency action. Mr. Rusk has established strong working relationships with staff at the Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Regional Water Quality Control Boards and U.S. Department of Justice. His areas of expertise also include California water rights, federal Indian law, and the USDA's National Organic Program.

Mr. Johnson serves clients in a wide range of infrastructure and natural resource contexts, both by guiding them past regulatory and environmental review obstacles to win agency approvals and by litigating the complex issues that often arise in such contexts. He focuses on projects that attract scrutiny from both regulators and third-party groups, including mining, rail and surface transportation, and port projects. Mr. Johnson has briefed and argued dozens of cases in trial and appellate courts around the country. He also successfully petitioned for U.S. Supreme Court review as counsel of record in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, which the Court will hear during its October 2024 term. Throughout his career, Mr. Johnson has defended favorable agency decisions by making arguments that government attorneys may be unable or unwilling to make. One of his appellate briefs is featured in a new book, Level Up Your Legal Writing by Joe Regalia (Aspen Publishing, 2024).

Ms. Macdonald focuses her practice on environmental litigation, environmental due diligence and transactional matters, environmental impact review, and land use issues. She has litigated multi-million dollar claims for recovery of remediation costs under the Superfund Law (CERCLA) in federal courts in New York, New Jersey (pro hac vice) and Ohio (pro hac vice), and has also represented clients in administrative proceedings before the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and New York City Environmental Control Board. Ms. Macdonald has significant experience with electronic discovery in complex, multi-party litigations, and leverages technology to efficiently meet her clients’ needs. In addition, she works with clients involved in the recycling and solid waste management industries to establish environmentally-responsible business practices and comply with product stewardship regulations.