McNees Partner, Richard H. Friedman, Elected Chair Of Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Environmental And Energy Law Section
April 9, 2015
Press Releases
HARRISBURG, PA. (April 9, 2015) – On April 8, 2015, partner Richard H. Friedman, partner at McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC in Harrisburg, was elected Chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Environmental and Energy Law Section (“EELS”).
Elected during the Section’s Annual Meeting, Rick will serve a 2 year term.
Friedman is resident in the McNees’ Harrisburg office and practices in the Environmental and Energy Law Group. His practice focus is on environmental compliance and permitting matters, complex transactions, the Clean Air Act, Superfund and cost recovery, Brownfields and land use, environmental due diligence and environmental management issues. Friedman gained experience as a senior enforcement attorney at the headquarters of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, where was responsible for nationwide civil and criminal prosecutions. While at the EPA, he developed and implemented programs to enforce compliance with environmental laws, including matters under the Clean Air Act.
In private practice Friedman has expanded his air emissions practice, counseling and defending clients regarding state and federal air compliance and permitting matters. Insurance companies have sought out his services in representing groups of defendants in private-party environmental cleanup cost recovery actions. By acting as ‘group’ counsel, common issues can be more efficiently and effectively litigated. In addition, he has worked with insurance companies to structure insurance policies that provide security for cleanup to facilitate the sale of property known to contain significant environmental contamination and to obtain state environmental regulatory acceptance of the insurance policy as a cleanup guaranty sufficient to issue liability releases. These ‘Brownfield’ projects facilitate the reuse of blighted property while ensuring environmental protection.
Since joining private practice in 1989, Rick has represented privately owned businesses, individuals and public entities and advised them in matters affecting state and federal environmental laws. His background has provided him with a unique understanding of clients’ business needs coupled with an intimate working knowledge of environmental law from both government and industry perspectives.
Friedman received his J.D. from the American University Washington College of Law and his undergraduate degree from the University of Maryland. He is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and the District of Columbia.
He is a frequent speaker on environmental law topics, including lecturing as a faculty member of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s (PBI) Environmental Law Forum.
McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC (www.mwn.com) is a full-service law firm representing corporations, associations, institutions, and individuals. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Lancaster, Harrisburg, State College, and Scranton, PA; Columbus, OH; and Washington, D.C. McNees is also a member of the ALFA International Global Legal Network.
For further information, contact Tiffany Riser at 717-237-5444 / triser@mwn.com.
