Environmentally Impaired Properties

We offer a unique ability to mitigate our clients’ exposure associated with their real-property holdings and to enhance recoveries on first-party claims. Our lawyers have undertaken to quantify and pursue some of the most daunting and creative damages claims in the country, ranging from property and market damages on a macroeconomic level to the prosecution of economic and tax revenues for entire state governments. At Kelley Drye we consistently help clients mitigate the risk posed by impacted properties and obtain significant damages and recoveries from responsible third parties.

Our environmental attorneys also assist clients in conducting environmental due diligence and contractual negotiations in transactions ranging from real estate purchases and sales to mergers and acquisitions, and debt and equity financings. Through timely characterization of environmental risk and contractual risk allocation, and the use of innovative third-party risk transfer mechanisms (like insurance and guaranteed fixed-priced remediation contracts), Kelley Drye’s environmental attorneys have the know-how and experience to efficiently resolve complicated environmental problems, allowing transactions to proceed with a minimum of cost and time.

Property Damage and Environmental Litigation

At Kelley Drye, we represent clients in environmental and property damage matters across the country. Companies with large real estate holdings and other institutional land owners have particular exposures and responsibilities due to their operations and property holdings. Oftentimes, these issues result from historical operations associated with tenants or prior owners. Our attorneys have significant experience representing clients in a wide variety of environmental actions, including cost recovery actions, contribution actions, nuisance and property damage litigation, natural resource damages litigation and many other matters relating to contamination and impaired real property. We also use our significant environmental experience to assist our clients with environmental regulatory matters and enforcement actions at the local, state and federal levels. From representing railroads in large Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) litigation to investigating and pursuing contribution for legacy-contaminated sites from prior owners, operators and tenants, our attorneys handle the full spectrum of environmental and property damage litigation for our clients.