Compliance & Regulatory Counseling

Staying ahead of environmental regulations is critical to avoiding costly enforcement actions and project delays. Our attorneys advise clients on the full spectrum of compliance obligations, including air and water permitting, hazardous materials management, ISRA compliance, EHS program design, and environmental management systems. We work alongside your operations teams to build proactive compliance strategies, conduct regulatory audits, and navigate agency inspections and negotiations. Whether you need a new permit, a compliance program overhaul, or guidance on evolving state and federal requirements, we provide practical, business-minded counsel.

When enforcement actions arise, we defend clients before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Justice, state environmental agencies and attorneys general in matters ranging from information requests, notices of violation, and administrative orders to civil penalty proceedings, consent decree negotiations, and criminal investigations under a myriad of environmental laws including but not limited to the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, RCRA, TSCA, CERCLA, and their state counterparts.

Transactions & Due Diligence

Environmental risk can make or break some deals, but in most it needs to be appropriately identified and addressed to avoid impediments to long-term success. Fox Rothschild's environmental attorneys partner with our nationally recognized real estate and corporate teams to identify, quantify and allocate environmental liabilities in mergers, acquisitions, financings and commercial real estate transactions. We oversee Phase I and Phase II assessments, negotiate environmental representations and indemnities, structure liability protections, and develop post-closing remediation and integration strategies. Our goal is to give you a clear-eyed understanding of environmental risk so you can move forward with confidence.

Our multidisciplinary team also helps companies evaluate and mitigate Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risk relating to their business practices and disclosures — screening suppliers and business partners, reviewing and drafting GRI, SASB and TCFD submissions, ensuring compliance with state and international ESG reporting regimes, vetting public statements to avoid greenwashing claims and defending ESG-related litigation.

Site Remediation & Redevelopment

Fox Rothschild has deep experience guiding clients through every stage of contaminated site cleanup and redevelopment. We counsel property owners, developers and investors on brownfield redevelopment, state-specific regulations, voluntary cleanup programs and Superfund remediation obligations. Our work covers vapor intrusion, stormwater management, wetlands, underground storage tanks and endangered species considerations. We help transform environmentally impaired properties into productive assets while managing regulatory requirements and minimizing liability exposure.

Emerging Contaminants & PFAS

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) present one of the most rapidly evolving environmental challenges facing businesses today. Fox Rothschild's environmental attorneys are fluent in the science, regulations and case law surrounding PFAS and other emerging contaminants. We advise clients on compliance with the expanding patchwork of federal and state PFAS regulations, work with clients and experts to defend against toxic tort and class action litigation, manage agency investigations and navigate the environmental implications of PFAS contamination in real estate transactions and site remediation. Our dedicated PFAS team tracks regulatory developments so you don't have to. We advise chemical manufacturers, product makers and retailers on navigating evolving state-level restrictions affecting products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including products sold in stores and online.

Environmental Litigation

Fox Rothschild's environmental litigators represent clients in high-stakes disputes across state and federal courts, administrative tribunals and on appeal. Our experience spans toxic tort claims, CERCLA and Superfund cost recovery actions, natural resource damages, citizen suits, commercial disputes, disputes arising under state and local laws, and civil and criminal enforcement defense. We regularly handle complex, expert-intensive, multiparty contamination cases and have a track record of achieving favorable outcomes — whether through aggressive trial advocacy or early, cost-effective resolution. When environmental disputes threaten your business, our team brings the litigation firepower and scientific fluency to protect your interests.