DLA Piper

Business focused answers to your environmental, health and safety issues

DLA Piper Canada's Environmental Law practice has a strong presence in all areas of environmental law, ‎including: contaminated lands ‎litigation, ‎defence of environmental prosecutions, real estate and ‎lender transactions with a ‎particular emphasis on ‎brownfields redevelopment, compliance issues, ‎environmental ‎approvals and assessments, due ‎diligence for mergers and acquisitions, waste ‎management ‎and disposal, recycling, waste diversion and ‎recovery, and transportation of dangerous ‎‎goods.‎

Our group of nationally recognized practitioners are involved in some of the most ‎important ‎and ‎‎impactful Canadian and regional environmental matters, as well as cross-border ‎transactions. ‎We ‎have ‎expertise encompassing all areas of environmental law and are ‎at the forefront of delivering ‎innovative ‎solutions to help clients successfully ‎navigate the ‎complexities of a shifting regulatory ‎landscape in ‎Canada. In particular, we have acted on a ‎number of major cross-border transactions ‎involving key ‎environmental aspects.‎

We also have significant involvement with business issues related to corporate social responsibility ‎as local, national and international stakeholders demand environmental stewardship from the ‎individuals and organizations they do business with. To successfully meet these demands, ‎companies and corporations must integrate environmental management into their business strategy ‎and policies. This requires a preventative approach to environmental compliance and liability issues, ‎as well as an understanding of the evolving regulatory landscape. Our group's experience supports ‎this approach.‎

Our Environment group works closely with top professionals in our Corporate, Litigation, Real ‎Estate, Energy, ‎Projects ‎and Indigenous Law Groups to provide comprehensive service to our ‎clients. We have a robust ‎national ‎reputation for our ability to deliver effective, on-the-ground ‎support while also providing ‎access to the ‎vast resources of the DLA Piper global network. This ‎‎unique combination ‎of local knowledge and international reach represents a distinct advantage and ‎‎competitive edge for our ‎clients.‎

Experience

Providing regulatory compliance advice to environmentally sensitive industries
Advising the boards of directors and senior officers of environmentally sensitive industries
Making the law on limitation periods for claims of continuing ‎migration of ‎contaminants
Providing environmental law advice to companies in the forestry, pulp and paper, real estate, ‎oil & gas, construction, mining and transportation sectors, among others‎
Advising the underwriters of transactional ‎representation ‎and warranty insurance policies. Our ‎environmental law expertise is a ‎key aspect of this advisory ‎work. As such, we participate in ‎many of the largest dollar value ‎transactions across Canada‎
Restructuring a property sale or purchase so as to minimize environmental liabilities
Advising on the applicability of insurance coverage for environmental liabilities
Designing and participating in environmental management systems, environmental audits ‎and other due diligence tools
Acting as counsel in the review of various projects under environmental assessment and ‎impact assessment legislation
Negotiating with regulatory officials to define permit requirements and to facilitate ongoing ‎compliance
Conducting appeals under environmental legislation and seeking judicial review before the ‎courts
Acting as counsel for plaintiffs and defendants engaged in civil litigation and private ‎arbitrations
Defending clients charged with environmental offences under provincial and federal ‎legislation
Advising governmental and quasi-governmental entities on policy and legislative ‎developments

Our group works with companies and organizations undertaking innovative environmental ‎projects. ‎Our ‎client base includes companies in the natural resource sector, those operating ‎in the energy and ‎waste ‎management sectors, the oil industry, utilities, provincial energy ‎boards, various levels of ‎government ‎and quasi-governmental agencies, as well as other ‎organizations.‎ Our advice focusses ‎on the impacts of:‎

Pending environmental legislation that will increase the demands and scrutiny on businesses ‎that impact the environment
Canada's international obligations under various environmental treaties and its commitments ‎under the NAFTA Environmental Cooperation Agreement, which are forcing businesses to ‎take a rigorous approach to environmental planning and remediation
The pressing concerns in relation to waste management, waste disposal and recycling: our ‎firm has more experience than any other Canadian firm dealing with these issues
Emissions trading, whether provincially, nationally or internationally, which will have ‎increasing significance for companies operating in Canada, as will the potential to be ‎involved in green energy initiatives