Environmental
Attorneys at Kotz Sangster Wysocki P.C. have decades of experience counseling and representing corporate, insurance and municipal clients in Michigan and nationwide concerning environmental compliance and permitting matters, and in litigation involving generator, transporter and treatment storage and disposal facility owners and operators under both federal and state law. Such experience includes representation of property owners, developers, and purchasers in connection with real estate acquisitions, land use and brownfield redevelopment matters, as well as environmental captive, self-insurance and re-insurance programs. Kotz Sangster attorneys in this practice group have extensive environmental, real estate, transactional and regulatory experience, and have attained specialized degrees, certifications or recognition for their expertise and practice skills.
Environmental Liability and Toxic Tort Defense
We defend our insurer, business and corporate clients, banking and financial services clients, real estate clients, construction clients and municipal clients in litigation and administrative proceedings for alleged state and federal statutory and common law environmental liability under pollution liability, professional liability in toxic tort, leaking underground storage tank, air quality, water quality, and CERCLA liability disputes, under pollution liability, professional liability and other policies of insurance.
Our many years of experience have enabled us to establish a network of consultants and engineers to undertake performance of required environmental site assessments and sampling when appropriate, draft analytical reports to evaluate remediation requirements, and to furnish expert testimony in defending our clients environmental disputes with state and federal agencies and 3rd parties under CERCLA, the Clean Water, Clean Air and Solid Waste Disposal Acts, among others.
Regulatory Compliance and Defense
Kotz Sangster attorneys routinely are called upon to defend clients in violations of environmental laws and regulations. Our years of experience negotiating with state and federal authorities in Michigan, Ohio, New Jersey, Maine, Illinois and other jurisdictions, has enabled Kotz Sangster to achieve cost-effective compliance and resolution of regulatory issues, and to establish systems for OSHA/MIOSHA compliance.
We defend our clients in regulatory administrative tribunals and in state and federal litigation. We pursue cost recovery actions against potentially responsible parties and represent clients before federal and state environmental and occupational health and safety agencies nationwide.
We have worked closely with state and federal regulatory agencies in numerous environmental controversies, and have developed cost-effective ways to obtain and review agency records.
Landfills
Kotz Sangster attorneys have extensive experience litigating issues regarding the permitting, siting and regulation of municipal and private landfills on behalf of, among others, the City of Garden City, Redford Township, and the City of Gibraltar in litigation with USEPA and MDEQ. We have also represented insurers on behalf of the South Macomb Disposal Authority in connection with environmental liability associated with the municipal landfill facility.
Land Use, Facility Siting and Wetlands Mitigation
Kotz Sangster attorneys negotiate and litigate facility siting and operating permit issues under state and federal environmental programs for numerous types of facilities, including biofuel and alternative energy installations. We defend clients on air, water and waste management compliance matters, wetlands mitigation, land use, agricultural environmental and permitting risks, including CAFO’s and wind farm activities, hazardous materials management and transportation issues, and with regard to maritime environmental issues including submerged land, dredging, wetland, and environmental impacts in waterfront use and development.
Sustainability/Alternative Energy and Emerging Issues
Defending crucial issues involving environmental contamination risks and liability associated with property transactions, ownership and operation of facilities and environmental health and safety issues are only part of the universe of issues that must be examined and addressed in today’s economy when defending clients with regard to environmental risks.
Kotz Sangster environmental law attorneys counsel firm clients on the liabilities and benefits associated with emerging sustainability and alternative energy issues, such as biofuel, alternative fuel, alternative energy, LEED “Green” building codes, and the economic development incentives, including pollution prevention grant and assistance programs, brownfield redevelopment funding and other incentives available to assist clients in competing in the current economy.
As part of our work product in these cases, we have developed a comprehensive library and database of materials on technical issues relating to sustainability, alternative energy, and funding incentives of interest to our clients.
We provide legal advice and work with law firms around the country so our clients can maintain a fair, consistent approach toward claims resolution, defense of lawsuits, liability allocation and recovery of funds from responsible parties.
Protecting our clients’ interests neither begins nor ends in the courtroom. The firm’s first priority is to prevent problems from ever occurring and to avoid unnecessary litigation.
