Great representation that does more than go with the flow
Considered among the nation’s premier water law practice, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck’s Water Group boasts unparalleled expertise in every aspect of water rights, supply, use, distribution and policy. Our Water Group represents both public and private water producers, suppliers and providers, including municipalities, wholesale and retail water agencies, public utilities, industrial users, real estate and land developers, vineyards, ranchers, significant land owners and various water-related public policy organizations.
Our practice is simultaneously both local and national in scope, bringing intelligence and experience on national issues along with a sensitivity for local needs. For decades, we have been on the ground dealing in the areas where water issues are most contentious. We have represented major water users and government agencies in some of the most significant and complex water projects in the country, often affecting multiple jurisdictions and states. Given our intimate knowledge and understanding of the resource, our clients rely on us to serve not only as legal counselor, but also as project managers and business advisors. Our writings in numerous publications and law reviews, have often successfully influenced state and federal legislation.
The group’s attorneys have served as counsel in major matters involving the use of water throughout the United States, including the West, the Great Lakes region, and the Southeast. Our attorneys also have experience internationally in the areas of water law reform and trans-boundary litigation.
Our Water Group includes more than 30 attorneys with specialized water practices and licenses throughout the country. Our group’s Shareholders and Senior Counsel average more than 21 years of legal experience in water. In short, in one firm, you will find the expertise to navigate any water problem you face.
Services
Transactional Representation. The Water Group provides the full range of legal services involving water-related transactions, including evaluating users’ existing and prospective water rights; protecting existing assets from interference; acquiring new water supplies; negotiating and preparing purchase, sale, lease, transfer and exchange agreements; permitting surface water rights; developing and implementing groundwater management systems; developing required local and regional planning documents; evaluating water supply availability in the land development context; and creating and dissolving water utilities and other corporate structures used to use, manage and deliver water.
Regulatory Compliance. The use, transportation and distribution of water are highly regulated. Our attorneys appear before local, state and federal regulatory bodies in jurisdictions throughout the country, ensuring our clients’ compliance with applicable regulatory schemes and securing regulatory approvals associated with any water transaction.
Litigation. In the litigation context, we have extensive experience before both administrative and judicial tribunals, at local, state and federal levels. We have played a leading role in many important water rights litigations in the West, including the adjudication of rights in dozens of groundwater basins and stream systems and have developed physical solutions to help manage these important water resources. We regularly represent water right holders in both pre- and post-adjudication groundwater and surface water contexts.
Legislative Services. Often, complex water problems require legislative solutions. Our policy advocates have collaborated with city, state and federal agencies and spent years lobbying for forward-thinking water policies. We have drafted state and local legislation and have participated in the creation of several special groundwater management agencies.
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