Environment: transactional
Hall of Fame
The lawyers at the very top of the profession, widely known and respected by peers and clients for their longstanding involvement in market-leading work.
Hall of fameCravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
Matthew Morreale is a partner in Cravath’s Corporate Department and leads its environmental practice. He advises the Firm’s clients on environmental matters relating to mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, financings and other business transactions, as well as on environmental-related proceedings and investigations. Mr. Morreale also regularly counsels companies and their boards of directors on matters relating to Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) concerns, including with respect to shareholder engagement and proposals, disclosure and proxy requirements, sustainability reporting, acquisition and investment diligence and integration matters. Clients describe Mr. Morreale as “an excellent lawyer who understands the complex regulatory impacts on companies, including emerging climate change issues.”
Hall of fameKirkland & Ellis LLP
Paul leads Kirkland’s Global Environmental Practice, serving as head environmental counsel for a large number of private equity firms and public companies. Paul’s clients rely on him to identify and strategically manage environmental regulatory compliance and other environmental liabilities. He is a big-picture thinker and creative problem solver that clients count on to be both commercial and practical, and to create bespoke and efficient solutions for everything from environmental crises to more routine matters of compliance and governance and all aspects of transactions.
Rising stars
Rising stars with regular involvement in their team's key work, and recognition from peers or clients as being ones to watch.
Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP
Next Generation Partners
Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
James “Jim” Dolphin is a partner in the Houston office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP working in the Environmental Transactions Practice Group. Jim manages environmental matters for private equity and industry clients involved in complex transactions concerning the acquisition and divestiture of large businesses and companies, and project development, including negotiating contractual language, counselling clients regarding regulatory compliance and exposure to environmental liabilities and advising on environmental insurance. Jim has significant experience advising clients on the environmental aspects of energy-focused transactions and projects, including energy transition projects involving carbon capture, utilization and sequestration, solar, energy storage, wind, geothermal, energy efficiency and environmental credits, attributes and offsets.
Leading lawyers
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Proskauer Rose LLP
Aliza R. Cinamon leads Proskauer’s Environmental Group. She advises both U.S. and international clients on a broad spectrum of environmental issues in connection with complex corporate, real estate, financing and bankruptcy transactions. Aliza provides clients with a deep array of capabilities, acting on matters that involve liability and risk allocation issues, remediation, brownfields, ESG, sustainability and climate change, public company disclosures, environmental insurance and technical expert management. Her practice also includes representing clients in superfund litigation matters, environmental compliance and permitting and federal and state environmental enforcement proceedings. She has worked on transactions involving both public and private companies covering a wide variety of industries including pharmaceuticals, chemical manufacturing, life sciences, telecommunications, real estate construction and development, sports and retail. Aliza is also devoted to pro bono matters, including heading Proskauer's efforts on behalf of Holocaust victims eligible for reparations, obtaining disability benefits for veterans, identifying and assisting potential victims of trafficking, helping persecuted Iraqis seeking refuge in the U.S. and providing corporate counseling for a number of Proskauer’s other pro bono clients. Before joining Proskauer, Aliza interned for the U.S. District Court, New York, Southern District with Judge Shira Scheindlin.
Bracewell LLP
Jason Hutt, chair of the firm’s environmental department, advises and defends clients with a deep appreciation of the high-profile and complex environmental and energy issues of our day. His advice and advocacy are informed by a technical understanding for how energy and key industrial sectors operate as well as an acumen for the challenges Bracewell’s clients must navigate to achieve their business objectives. Jason is a key member of Bracewell's incident response and internal investigation teams for matters subject to the jurisdictional reaches of these agencies. Jason's experience and perspective inform his advice to project developers, debtors, investor groups and financial institutions focused on the business implications of various policy initiatives as well as the environmental risks and liabilities associated with transactions. His thoughts on legal and policy matters are regularly reflected in the mainstream media and trade publications covering energy and environmental issues.
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Jonathan Kidwell is a partner in Kirkland’s Environmental Practice. He is recognized as a “Rising Star” by Law360 and recommended in The Legal 500 U.S. as “among the most commercial environmental attorneys in the market.” Jonathan’s clients rely on him to identify and manage complex environmental compliance and liability issues, primarily in the context of corporate mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, financing transactions, real estate investments and bankruptcies. Jonathan has particular experience in the oil and gas, waste management, manufacturing and chemical sectors and his work has included hundreds of successfully closed deals in a wide range of commercial transactions. Jonathan routinely identifies and assesses environmental risks and liabilities, coordinates due diligence, manages consultants and technical experts, drafts and negotiates contracts and agreements, coordinates lender issues, negotiates environmental insurance coverage, coordinates environmental regulatory approvals and pursues resolution of regulatory compliance and environmental liability issues. Jonathan also has substantial experience advising clients on environmental regulatory risks and trends, managing cleanups, permitting and navigating enforcement actions. Through the Practice, Jonathan maintains a worldwide network of environmental consulting and insurance and legal professionals to provide his clients with all necessary resources during or following their transactions.
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
Annmarie M. Terraciano is a senior attorney in Cravath’s Corporate Department. She advises the Firm’s clients on environmental matters relating to mergers and acquisitions, capital markets transactions, financings and other business transactions, as well as on environmental‑related proceedings and indemnification disputes.
Bracewell LLP
Tim’s clients rely on him for the defense of environmental enforcement actions and assistance with the environmental aspects of major transactions and project development matters, including siting and permitting. Tim has also overseen environmental compliance audits involving thousands of locations, handled hundreds of environmental audit disclosures and pioneered the development and use of US EPA’s audit policy for new owners. Although he undertakes matters in all environmental media, Tim has special depth in issues involving hazardous waste. His clients report in Chambers USA that “he’s the premier lawyer in Texas," "the best on all environmental matters,” and “the rare outside counsel who combines subject-matter expertise with outstanding commercial judgment” (2023). They have said that “one of Tim’s chief strengths is his ability to explain the law in a way that anyone can understand” (2019). They have also described him as “a very astute lawyer, liked for his quickness and thorough responses” (2007); as having “a good blend of scientific knowledge and legal acumen that helps navigate challenging regulatory issues” (2021); as having “great business acumen and amazing negotiation skills” (2009); and as capable of delivering “practical, cost-effective solutions for his clients” (2011). Tim was also recognized by Law360 as a 2023 Environmental MVP. In addition to his duties at Bracewell, Tim periodically teaches the course in Corporate Environmental Law at The University of Texas School of Law. Before joining Bracewell, Tim was research assistant to Professor Laurence H. Tribe of Harvard Law School, editor-in-chief of the Harvard Environmental Law Review, and a judicial clerk for the Honorable Henry A. Politz, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP
O'Melveny & Myers LLP
O'Melveny & Myers LLP
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP