Environmental Crimes Litigation Environment Crimes Attorney

The white collar attorneys at The Blanch Law Firm provide advice and counsel for their clients in a vast array of litigation matters regarding environmental issues and allegations of corporate crimes. As our society becomes more and more accepting of the green movement, new and restrictive legislative acts are passed that have a deep and costly affect on the way in which businesses conduct their day to day operations.  Compliance with the new regulations in these changing times can be difficult and confusing, if not costly and imposing. There will be times when the business community will not be able to respond to the demands for change made by the government. When that happens, a precarious situation arises; no officer of a corporation wishes to be responsible for the massive civil penalties and damaging public relations that can result from poorly defended environmental crimes litigation.  If you are facing pending litigation regarding alleged environmental crimes, contact the environment crimes attorneys at The Blanch Law Firm today and begin your company’s defense.

What Are Environment Crimes?

Environmental crimes are investigated and prosecuted by The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), The Environmental investigation Agency (EIA), as well as other federal and state authorities. The first laws to prevent environmental crimes were passed hundreds of years ago; one of the first recorded cases alleging environmental crimes was from 1610 and involved a complaint against a farmer regarding a pig sty that was too close to his neighbor’s property. Since then, legislative actions regarding environmental crimes have become much more complex and have been codified in such acts as:

• The Clean Water Act
• The Clean Air Act
• The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
• The Toxic Substances Control Act
• The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-know-act
• The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide  Act
• The Atomic Energy Act
• The Safe Drinking Water Act
• The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act
• The Endangered Species Act
• The Pollution Prevention Act
• The Oil Pollution Act
• The National Environmental Policy Act
•  The Federal Hazardous Materials Transportation Statute
• The Rivers And Harbors Appropriation Act
• The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
• The Deepwater Port Act
• The Solid Waste Disposal Act
• The Noise Control Act
• The Nuclear Waste Policy Act

Common activities that result in environmental crimes legislation include but are not limited to:

• Toxic Spills.
• Hazardous Dumping and Soil or Water Pollution.
• Asbestos Violations
• Explosions and Chemical Spills
• Improper Removal of Lead Paid and Toxic Substances
• Illegal Disposal of Hazardous Waste
• Export of Hazardous Waste Without the Permission of the Receiving Country
• Water Pollution

For businesses, immense litigation is required once an accusation of environmental crimes becomes a criminal or civil case. In some instances, cases have lasted for over 10 years before they were resolved. The penalties that are decided by the courts for environmental crimes can be very severe; as a result of the Exxon Valdez disaster, the Exxon Mobil Company was ordered by the courts to pay a penalty of over $5 billion. While those penalties were later reduced, they did serve to prove that environmental crimes are prosecuted by the government very seriously.

Criminal Penalties For Environmental Crimes

When environmental crimes and EPA violations are discovered the officers of the accused corporations may find themselves facing criminal charges regarding the alleged actions. Charges of money laundering, mail fraud, wire fraud, as well as other charges relating to improper business practices and perjury can follow. The penalties for these crimes are very severe and can result in up to 20 years in jail as well as exorbitant civil penalties. If you are facing criminal charges that are stemming from alleged acts of environmental crime, contact the white collar attorneys at The Blanch Law Firm today and begin the fight to protect yourself from serious criminal penalties today.

The Blanch Law Firm Can Help

The lawsuits and legal actions that follow from alleged acts of environmental crimes are very damaging and must be answered by a team of skilled environmental crimes attorneys at an experienced white collar firm. The environmental crimes attorneys at The Blanch Law Firm are dedicated to their clients and know that their hard work will pay rich dividends for their clients. If you are facing charges of environmental crimes, or would like to consult with an attorney about any possible exposure that your company may be facing, contact the environmental crimes attorneys at The Blanch Law Firm today.