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Paul handles environmental litigation and contested regulatory matters, with particular emphasis on groundwater, surface water, and sediment issues. He has substantial jury and bench trial experience in federal and state courts involving groundwater and surface water claims, cost recovery, nuisance, and trespass. Most recently, Paul completed a 22-day jury trial that resulted in a $56 million verdict for his corporate client, which included $50 million in punitive damages. The case involved pipeline-related groundwater contamination and a contractual indemnity claim. His clients are primarily derived from the chemical and pipeline industries. Paul has represented clients in more than 100 contested rulemakings and permit and violation proceedings under RCRA, NPDES, CAA, DOT, DOE, NRC, RRC, and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. He has also served as lead industry counsel on negotiated rulemakings involving air toxics, PSD, NSPS, and stream segment standards.
Paul's present engagements include ecological and health risk issues in three distinct rivers, remediation measures at multiple chromium plants, an Agent Orange plant, cost recovery claims, and groundwater contamination claims. He has negotiated and enforced over $1 billion environmental insurance policies for chemical, pipeline and oil and gas operations.
ARTICLES / PUBLICATIONS
Author
"Is the Polluter Pays Principle All There is to Allocating Environmental Liability?" 37 BNA Environment Reporter 1870 (2006)
"Polluters & Protectors: Combined Sewer System Authorities and Urban Waterway Restorations," (with Patricia Lin), 45 Natural Resources Journal 539 (2005)
"Project Development & Finance: Environmental Permit Opinion" (with A. Sidney Holderness), Legal Opinion Letters Formbook (Jr. Aspen Publishers 2003)
"U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Policy: From the Beginning to the Millennium," 19 SETAC Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry 781 (2000)
"Regulatory Compliance and Litigation Impacts for Pipelines," Annual Oil & Gas Program, Railroad Commission of Texas (1993)
"Superfund and the Banking Industry," Texas Bar Journal (December 1987)
Bohannon's New Mexico Environmental Law Handbook (Butterworths Legal Publishers 1988)
BRIEFINGS, SEMINARS & SPEECHES
Seminar
"Enforcing Environmental Indemnities," 55th Annual Program on Oil & Gas Law, Institute for Energy Law (2004)
"Environmental Law in the Oil & Gas Industry," South Texas School of Law Annual Environmental Symposium (2002)
Speeches - "Environmental Regulation of Pipeline Rights-of-Way," Annual Convocation of the International Right-of-Way Association (1991)
Panelist - "Topical Conference on Traditional and Non-Traditional Air Contaminants," Lovelace Inhalation Toxicology Research Institute (1987)
PROFESSIONAL / CIVIC AFFILIATIONS
Member
State Bar of Texas
American Bar Association
Founding Chair - New Mexico Oil & Gas Association Environmental Affairs Committee (1998 - 1991)
Listed - Profiled as one of the leading Environment lawyers in Texas in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business (2007) | 