Energy, Environment and Infrastructure

Of Counsel - Corporate and Finance Transactions

Robert (Bob) Van Voorhees has practiced law in the environmental, safety, and health field since the early 1970’s. His practice includes environmental litigation, counseling, and representation on regulatory and legislative matters in the air, water, hazardous waste, toxic substance, underground injection, and occupational safety and health areas. He has represented major clients, primarily in the chemical and petroleum industries, in achieving broad policy objectives in rulemaking proceedings and regulatory litigation. He has represented clients in challenges to regulations and standards in the United States Supreme Court and in the United States Courts of Appeals and District Courts. He also has defended a broad range of clients in civil and criminal enforcement actions before administrative agencies and in courts at both the federal and state levels.

Over the past two decades Mr. Van Voorhees served as counsel to the Underground Injection Control Group of the American Chemistry Council (formerly the Chemical Manufacturers Association) and has represented individual companies in the chemical, petroleum, and commercial waste management industries in dealing with regulatory and legislative issues relating to underground injection control. He has represented one or more clients that have used wells in each of the five current UIC Program well classifications as well as clients currently exploring the potential use of underground injection for the geologic storage or sequestration of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions. Mr. Van Voorhees currently represents the Underground Injection Technology Group (UIT Group), an association of companies that use underground injection for industrial wastewater management. He was instrumental in obtaining relief for Class I injection well operators through the promulgation of the Hazardous Waste Disposal Injection Regulation (HWDIR) petition program under RCRA and the enactment of the Land Disposal Program Flexibility Act of 1996. The Ground Water Protection Council (GWPC), the association of state ground water protection and underground injection control programs and administrators, presented its Award of Excellence in Ground Water Protection to him in 1996 for his outstanding contribution in the development of sound national regulations for underground injection control.

His practice also includes representation of clients on environmental assessments in conjunction with currently owned and operated manufacturing and other facilities, properties being considered for acquisition, and claims against owners for contamination or damage to neighboring facilities and properties. Such representation has included preparation and prosecution of claims for remediation of environmental damages as well as defending against such claims. In this regard, Mr. Van Voorhees has worked with environmental and technical consultants on the development of environmental remediation projects requiring approval by government agencies at both the federal and state levels in the United States. He also has represented clients in Europe and Asia in conjunction with environmental assessments and claims for remediation or restoration of environmental and natural resource damages.

Mr. Van Voorhees represented the State of Kuwait and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia before the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC) on claims for compensation for environmental and natural resource damages caused by the Gulf War from August 2, 1990 to March 2, 1991. This representation included the provision of legal services for contracting and managing a multi-million dollar environmental monitoring and assessment program to assess terrestrial, marine, and groundwater oil contamination, public health impacts, and natural resource damages as well as the identification and development of remediation and restoration methods. It also involved the marshalling and presentation of evidence in support of the claims before the UNCC, resulting in awards to the two countries for compensation totaling more than 4.7 billion U. S. dollars.

Mr. Van Voorhees also has represented and counseled industrial clients in achieving compliance or obtaining modification of chemical regulation and reporting requirements under the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) program of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) and the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA) and under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

He has also counseled clients on compliance with restrictions on content and after-life management of electrical and electronic equipment under regulatory programs in the European Union, China, Republic of Korea, and other areas.

Concentration: Clean Air, Clean Water, Underground Injection, Chemical and Product Content Regulation, Legislative and Regulatory Advocacy, Litigation, Appellate Litigation, Permit Appeals