Peter L. Gray
FAX: 202.496.7756
Experience
Peter L. Gray serves as National Chair of the firm’s Environment, Energy and Product Regulation Department. Since joining the firm in 1985, he has worked on a broad range of environmental matters, including disputes over responsibility for cleanup of contaminated property, challenges to state and federal environmental regulations, enforcement cases involving hazardous materials, arbitration in data compensation claims involving pesticide data submissions, and climate change planning and advocacy.
In addition to his environmental litigation practice, Mr. Gray has a diverse Washington, DC-based regulatory practice in which he regularly represents clients before numerous federal agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation, and counsels clients on hazardous materials management, release reporting requirements and climate change.
Mr. Gray writes extensively in the environmental area. Recent manuals and treatises he authored include The CERCLA Basic Practice Manual (published by the American Bar Association 2008); the Pesticide Regulation Handbook (2007); and The EPCRA Basic Practice Manual (published by the American Bar Association 2002). He launched the Climate Change Insights blog, a forum for critical analyses of climate law and policy. Mr. Gray also participates as a commentator in broadcast media, having appeared on Fox Business News and Bloomberg Radio.
Mr. Gray frequently writes for the Washington Legal Foundation, and he is a member of the Board of Advisors to the Chemical Waste Litigation Reporter. He has served in many leadership roles in the ABA Section on Environment, Energy and Resources. He currently serves as the Chair of the Environmental Litigation and Toxic Torts Committee, and he is the incoming chair of the Site Remediation Committee.
Notable Engagements
- National coordinating counsel for multinational munitions company on Superfund litigation. In this capacity, Mr. Gray has orchestrated the company's defense of dozens of federal and private cost recovery cases filed against the company in connection with cleanup of contamination linked to a pesticide which the company sold in the 1960s and 1970s.
- Represented Fortune 500 Company in Natural Resource Damage action filed by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. (NJDEP v. 3M et al.).
- Defended numerous Fortune 500 and multinational corporations in enforcement actions brought by state agencies and EPA under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ("RCRA").
- Represented numerous companies in enforcement actions brought by the U.S. Department of Transportation under the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act.
Education
- J.D., The George Washington University Law School, 1985
- M.S., The George Washington University, 1982
- B.S., University of Maryland, 1979
Admitted
- District of Columbia
- Pennsylvania
Publications:
- “Handicapping Senate Passage of the Kerry-Boxer Climate Bill,” Environmental Leader, (December 9, 2009).
- "Stimulus Package Recharges Renewable Energy," Urban Land, (August 2009).
- "Divvying Up the Tab: Implications of Burlington Northern on Supefund Apportionment," Chemical Waste Litigation Reporter, (June 2009), co-authored with Christopher Baker.
- "Is Coal The Fuel Of The Future?" Law360, (February 12, 2009).
- "Climate Change Suits against Fossil Fuel Power: Will They Get Hotter or Colder?," Bloomberg Corporate Law Journal, (Summer 2008) co-authored with J. Benjamin Winburn.
- "Climate Change Tort Suits: Hot or Cold?," Washington Legal Foundation, (June 2008), co-authored with J. Benjamin Winburn.
- "Carbon Accounting: A Practical Guide for Lawyers," Natural Resources & Environment, (Winter 2008), co-authored with Geraldine E. Edens.
- "The SEC Is Getting Hot And Bothered Over Climate Change," Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, (January 2008).
Seminars and Presentations:
- "Can Recycling Make A Significant Impact on Climate Change?," 2009 Keep America Beautiful Symposium, (October 21, 2009).
- "Carbon Developments in the United States," USGBC Capital Chapter Carbon Workshop, (June 2008).
- "Preemption Issues for Federal & State Climate Change Schemes," Climate Change Legislation: Risk & Opportunities, (May 2008).
- "US Climate Policy Developments," Annual meeting of the National Recycling Coalition, (September 2007).
Civic Activities:
- Board of Directors, Montgomery County Revenue Authority (Maryland)
Professional Activities:
- Founder / Board of Directors, Association of Climate Change Officers
- Chair, Environmental Litigation and Toxic Tort Committee, ABA Section on Environment, Energy and Resources (SEER)
- Board of Advisors, Chemical Waste Litigation Reporter