Janet McQuaid
Janet McQuaid
Biography
Janet McQuaid is an environmental lawyer focusing on the chemical, manufacturing, and energy industries and site cleanups. Her practice includes compliance counseling, enforcement defense, litigation, and transactions involving environmental issues and water rights.
Janet has briefed and argued environmental matters before the state and federal district and appellate courts. She has represented clients in contested permitting and enforcement proceedings before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and state regulatory authorities in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Texas, and other states. Janet has also supported hundreds of transactions involving industrial and commercial facilities, including refineries, chemical plants, oil and gas properties, pipelines, mines, quarries, paper mills, dry cleaners and many others.
Prior to attending law school, Janet worked as an engineer for eleven years for Exxon, where she provided technical support in designing, building, and operating oil and gas exploration, production, and refining facilities.
Professional experience
Representative experience
Representative experience
- Lead environmental attorney for a nationwide energy company's hydraulic fracturing, oil and gas production, and transportation operations in the Appalachian states
- Lead attorney in a quarry's successful appeal of a permit to discharge storm water and wastewater from its aggregate operations in Pennsylvania
- Senior Attorney for El Paso Corporation providing legal support for compliance and litigation matters nationwide involving a wide range of environmental law disciplines, including remediation, Superfund, air quality, climate change, solid and hazardous waste management, water quality, water supply, underground injection control, toxic substances control and oilfield legacy litigation
- Lead attorney for oil and gas trade associations in judicial review of the U.S. EPA's interpretation of the Clean Water Act, which would have required storm water permits for oil and gas construction activities and related challenge to storm water general permit for oil and gas construction activities, which together were estimated by DOE to have the potential to reduce onshore, domestic production by about 10% over twenty years
- Lead water law attorney for electric generator in due diligence and contract negotiations for purchase of reclaimed water and raw supplies for several power plants in Texas, and related government authorizations
- Lead attorney for cement and concrete company in defense of wastewater discharge enforcement action and potentially contested wastewater discharge permit renewal
- Lead environmental counsel for large, financial-sector investor in transactions, litigation and remediation involving shopping centers impacted by historical dry cleaning and oil and gas operations
- Lead attorney in contested permit for hazardous and mixed waste treatment and storage facility
- Counsel for major refining and petrochemical company on water quality and water rights issues
- Counsel for a semiconductor manufacturing and research facility and for a chemical importer on various toxic substances control, new chemical regulation and pesticide registration matters
- Environmental co-counsel for mining company in environmental due diligence and contract negotiations for multiple ore and smelting facilities in the U.S. and internationally
- Counsel for owner of new quarry in permit dispute under National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act
- U.S. co-counsel on environmental issues for purchaser in $1.5 billion transaction involving acquisition of multiple petrochemical facilities in the U.S. and internationally
Rankings and recognitions
Rankings and recognitions
- Who's Who in Energy, Pittsburgh Business Times, 2014 - 2016
- Super Lawyers, Environmental, Thomson Reuters, 2007 - 2009, 2017
- Chambers USA, Guide to America's Leading Business Lawyers, Chambers & Partners, 2005 - 2007
- The Best Lawyers in America, Pittsburgh Environmental Law, Best Lawyers, 2007, 2015 - 2017
- Who's Who in American Law, Marquis, 2007
- Profiles in Power, Finalist, Austin Business Journal, 2006
- National Registry of Who's Who, 2001
Education
Education
1992 - J.D., honors, The University of Texas
1989 - MBA, Houston Baptist University
1978 - B.S.ChE, magna cum laude, University of Pittsburgh
While at The University of Texas, Janet was chief manuscript editor of the Texas Law Review and a member of the Order of the Coif. While at the University of Pittsburgh, she was elected to the Tau Beta Pi engineering honorary society and the Omega Chi Epsilon chemical engineering honorary society.
Janet is admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Texas, and Colorado. She is admitted to practice before the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the 5th, 7th, and 9th Circuits, the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the Southern and Northern Districts of West Virginia, the Northern District of Ohio, and the Western and Southern Districts of Texas.
Admissions
Admissions
- Colorado State Bar
- Ohio State Bar
- Pennsylvania State Bar
- Texas State Bar
- West Virginia State Bar
Publications
Publications
- Co-author, "Ohio Supreme Court strikes down local oil and gas ordinances," International Law Office, March 23, 2015
- "Navigating The 'Twilight' Of CERCLA Sections 107 and 113," Law360.com, August 3, 2014
- Co-author, "EPA defines 'diesel' for hydraulic fracturing under Safe Drinking Water Act," International Law Office, March 10, 2014
- Co-author with Jeremy Mercer, "Act 13: A 'fractured' Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision on Pennsylvania's Oil and Gas Act," Norton Rose Fulbright Legal Update, January 2014
- Co-author, "Trade Secrets and the Regulation of Hydraulic Fracturing: Toward a Global Perspective," [2013] Int'l Energy L. R. 154-167 & 203-213 (Issues 4 & 5 2013)
- Co-author, "Trade secrets and the regulation of hydraulic fracturing - Toward a global perspective," Norton Rose and Fulbright & Jaworski Guide, April 11, 2013
- Co-author, "Pennsylvania Act 13 (HB1950) Rewrites Law Governing Oil and Gas Activities," Fulbright Briefing, March 12, 2012
- Co-author, Essentials of Texas Water Resources, Chapter 26 (Water Quality Standards) (With Jennifer Benaman), Chapter 27 (Water Quality Considerations in Permitting Water Supply Projects), and Chapter 28 (Dredge and Fill Permits), TexasBarBooks, 2009 & 2012
- "Used Oil," Environmental Law, Chapter 22, Texas Practice Series No. 46, Thomson-West 2d edition, 2005 and Pocket Part 2006; "Citizen Suits & Public Participation," Chapter 24, Pocket Part 2006; Chapter 30, "Public Participation and Citizen Suits, Pocket Part 2007; Chapter 33, "Environmental Insurance," Pocket Part 2006; Chapter 3
- "Trading Spaces: Common Law, Statutory, and Contractual Allocations of Environmental Liability in Commercial Transactions," 35 Texas Environmental Law Journal 5, Fall 2004
- "Generator Standards," Chapter 8, The RCRA Manual, ABA SEER, 2004 & 2013
- "Environmental Issues in Oil and Gas Exploration and Production," Proceedings of the 55th Annual Oil and Gas Law Conference, Matthew-Bender, 2004
- Co-Author and Co-Editor, The Texas Environmental Law Handbook Gov't Institutions, 4th & 5th editions, 1996 and 2000
Speaking engagements
Speaking engagements
- Speaker, Environmental Insurance, CHWMEG Annual Conference, Denver, CO 2020
- Panel Chair, Environmental Permitting, American Bar Association, Section on Energy, Environmental, and Resources Conference, Orlando, FL, 2017
- Co-chair, speaker and moderator, Conference on Water Acquisition and Management for Oil & Gas Development: Legal and Regulatory Requirements, Houston, Texas, April 2016
- National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, Regulatory Developments Related to Hydraulic Fracturing in the United States, Kansas City, Missouri, November 2013
- Norton Rose Fulbright Alumni Mergers & Acquisitions School, Environmental Considerations and Mechanisms in Transactions, November 2013
- Independent Petroleum Association of America, Environmental Healty & Safety Committee, Effluent Limitation Guidelines 101, Dallas, Texas, March 2013
- Norton Rose Fulbright Program, Applachian Shale Seminar, "Environmental Update," April 2012
- "Federal Regulation of Carbon Sequestration," University of Texas CLE Carbon and Climate Change Conference, Austin, Texas, Fall 2008
- Annual Texas Water Law Conference, Co-Chair and Speaker, CLE International, Austin, Texas, Fall 1998 - 2007; Houston Water Law Conference, CLE International, Houston, Texas, 1999 - 2003, 2007
- "Enforcement: How to Prepare, How to Respond, and Why It Really Matters," Associated General Contractors, Austin, Texas, June 26, 2006
- "Alternative Environmental Dispute Resolution: An Industry Lawyer's Perspective," Conference of the Americas, Panama City, Panama, Co-Sponsored by The Frank Evans Center for Dispute Resolution of the South Texas College of Law, October 19, 2005
Memberships and activities
Memberships and activities
- Allegheny County, PA, Bar Association, Energy and Environmental Law Section, Council Member
- American Bar Association - Section on Environment, Energy and Resources
- Third, Fifth, and Seventh Circuit Federal Bar Associations
- State Bar Associations of Pennsylvania, Texas, Colorado, and West Virginia
- American Institute of Chemical Engineers
- Society of Women Engineers
- United Way of Washington County, Pennsylvania
- Board of Directors (2014)
- Texas Advocacy Project
- Board of Directors (2011)
- Justice Partner (2009 - 2011)
- University of Houston School of Law, Adjunct Professor (2010)
- Paramount and State Theatres, Austin, Texas
- Board of Directors (2005 - 2011)
- Treasurer (2007 - 2010)
- Secretary (2006)
- Therapy Pet Pals of Texas, Volunteer (2000 - 2006)
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