Morgan Lewis

David K. Brown

Associate

David K. Brown focuses his practice on environmental litigation and regulatory compliance. He represents corporate and municipal clients in matters arising under federal and California state and local environmental statutes, including the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), the Hazardous Substances Account Act (HSAA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

Extended Profile

David graduated from Harvard Law School in 2011 where he was a senior editor of the Harvard Negotiation Law Review, a member of the Student Association of Law and Mind Sciences, and a participant in the 2009 Ames Moot Court Competition. During his first summer as a law student, David served as a clinical fellow in the Post-Foreclosure Eviction Defense Housing Clinic at the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School, where he assisted low-income tenants and worked with community partners in support of legislative and other law reform initiatives to improve housing conditions.

selected representations

  • Representing a chemical company and former landowner in connection with sediment contamination at the Lower Duwamish Waterway Superfund Site in Washington
  • Representing a group of waste generators investigating and remediating the closed Ascon Landfill in California
  • Representing an automobile dealer support company in a property contamination lawsuit related to the former South Dayton Dump and Landfill in Ohio
  • Representing an industrial company and landowner in connection with sediment contamination at the Portland Harbor Superfund Site in Oregon
  • Representing a municipal water district in a rate validation lawsuit, which included claims under the California Water Code and allegations of breach of contract and fiduciary duty
  • Representing various clients in administrative enforcement actions brought by the US Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board under greenhouse gas emissions regulations and consumer products regulations
  • Representing various clients in administrative enforcement actions brought by California Regional Water Quality Control Boards under the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act
  • Counseling various clients regarding federal and state environmental permitting requirements applicable to major construction projects
  • Obtained a favorable settlement for a chemical company in a stormwater citizen suit brought under the Clean Water Act
  • Obtained a favorable settlement for a former aeronautical products manufacturer in a multiparty toxic tort lawsuit
  • Integral member of a team that obtained a favorable settlement for an oil and gas company in a multimillion-dollar property contamination case
  • Significant experience drafting and filing motions in federal and state courts

Education

  • Harvard Law School, 2011, Juris Doctor
  • University of California, Los Angeles, 2005, Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude

Admissions

  • California
  • US District Court for the Central District of California

Awards and Affiliations

Rising Star, Industry focus: Environment: Regulatory, The Legal 500 US (2019) 

American Bar Association

Los Angeles County Bar Association

Hispanic National Bar Association

Senior Editor, Harvard Negotiation Law Review (2009–2010)

Best Appellee Brief, Harvard Law School First-Year Ames Moot Court Program, Sec. 7B (2009)

Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society (2005)

Publications

1/10/2019 - Science Transparency Rule Back on the Table in 2019

1/13/2015 - “Final” May Be a Misnomer for California’s Final Fracking Regulations

6/17/2014 - EPA Proposes Rule Requiring Existing Power Plants to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

12/18/2013 - Department of Conservation Proposes Emergency Rulemaking to Implement Interim Fracking Regulations

8/17/2012 - CARB Proposes Amendments to State Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reporting

5/30/2012 - California Department of Conservation Announces Plan to Adopt Fracking Regulations and Revisit Existing Rules for Underground Injection Wells