Environmental and Natural Resource Litigation

Gross Klein PC represents property owners, non-profit organizations, fishers, communities, and individuals in litigation arising out of contamination, disputes over access and regulation, natural resource protection, and environmental review.

Our firm’s attorneys have a proven track record of successfully prosecuting high-profile environmental and natural resource cases. They understand the applicable law and the science; and their deep dedication and broad complex litigation experience ensure application of both in the ways needed to win. 

Representative Cases

A sample of some of the recent environmental and natural resource litigation cases handled by the firm:

  • PG&E Manufactured Gas Plant Contamination - Successful prosecution of contamination cases, in the Northern District of California, on behalf of numerous homeowners and commercial fishers against PG&E arising out of historical manufactured gas plant (“MGP”) contamination in the Marina and Fisherman’s Wharf neighborhoods of San Francisco and areas offshore thereof. The cases have resulted in: the recovery for homeowners of tens of millions of dollars in consideration; a multi-year PG&E-funded joint investigation of the subject contamination; two consent decrees that together will result in the cleanup of the subject offshore and onshore contamination and that required PG&E pay $4.2 million to fund environmental programs to mitigate the harm the contamination causes, including a highly successful herring permit retirement program; and an order establishing PG&E’s responsibility for the contamination from a certain MGP, for which it has denied responsibility for more than 100 years. Published decisions include: 501 F. Supp. 3d 774 (N.D. Cal. 2020); 81 F. Supp. 3d 847 (N.D. Cal. 2015).

  • Bair v. Caltrans | Lotus v. Caltrans – Successful prosecution, in parallel federal and California state court actions, of environmental law claims arising out of plans to expand a United States Highway through ancient redwoods of Richardson Grove State Park. Published decisions include: 867 F.Supp.2d 1058 (N.D. Cal. 2012) and 223 Cal. App. 4th 645 (2014).

  • Souza v. Caltrans – Successful prosecution of federal environmental claims against Caltrans and the National Marine Fisheries Service, in the Northern District of California, arising out of plans to expand a United States Highway along the Smith River in Northern California. The Smith River is the nation’s longest designated Wild and Scenic River, is the only major river in California that has never been dammed and is home to California’s healthiest runs of Chinook salmon, coho salmon, and steelhead. The litigation has resulted in the project’s halt since 2014.

  • Pac Rim Cayman v. Republic of El Salvador — Successful representation of El Salvadoran local communities, as amici curiae, in a suit at the International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes by a Canadian mining company’s U.S. subsidiary against the government of El Salvador under the international investment provisions of the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Achieved first-ever consideration of amicus curiae submission by CAFTA panel, which supported an ultimately successful jurisdictional motion by the government of El Salvador.

  • JATAM v. Republic of Indonesia — Successful representation of Indonesian local communities and international environmental organizations in defense of a ban on open-pit mining in Indonesia’s protected forests in the face of threats by international mining companies. Litigation before the Indonesia Constitutional Court resulted in the partial overturning of the government’s reversal of the ban.