Environment
Sidley Austin LLP is a premier choice for clients seeking top-tier environmental legal services across litigation, regulatory, and transactional matters. Known for its strength in environmental enforcement and compliance, the firm handles complex cases and advises on critical issues like ESG, PFAS, and climate change. Recent successes include guiding Cummins Inc. to a $1.67bn Clean Air Act settlement, the largest civil penalty in its history. The firm also represents Vineyard Wind 1 in ongoing litigation. Global co-leader of the practice Justin Savage is recognized for his litigation and trial prowess. Byron Taylor is noted for leadership in environmental law and diversity, while Heather Palmer co-leads the firm's ESG and climate change practices, advising on environmental aspects in M&A, corporate securities, and global finance matters.
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Profile
Work Department
Environmental, Health, and Safety
Position
Partner
Career
JUSTIN SAVAGE is global co-leader of the firm’s Environmental, Health, and Safety practice and leads the Automotive and Mobility sector team. Justin focuses on high-stakes environmental, health, and safety litigation and strategic counseling, including government enforcement actions, internal investigations, and rulemaking challenges. Justin is recognized for “his litigation and trial prowess in major environmental cases” and his “understanding of regulators’ viewpoints” (2017) by Chambers USA, which has ranked him for Environment in District of Columbia (2017–2024) and Transport: Road (Automotive) in USA – Nationwide (2023–2024). Other market recognitions include receiving the Law360 “MVP” Award (2018, 2024) and the National Law Journal’s “Energy & Environment Trailblazer” (2021).
Justin’s clients concentrate in heavily regulated industries, including auto and mobility, energy, refining, chemicals, wood products, and mining. Justin litigates and counsels across the spectrum of U.S. environmental, transportation, and administrative laws, including the Clean Air Act (Title I, mobile sources, and fuels), climate change, incident response, RMP, NHTSA, Clean Water Act, CSB investigations, TSCA, CERCLA, RCRA, APA claims, FOIA litigation, NEPA, and the Safe Drinking Water Act.
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Key clients
- Cenovus Energy Vineyard Wind, LLC and Vineyard Wind 1, LLC Cummins Inc. HF Sinclair Delek US, Inc. Sterigenics American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) BP North America Inc.
Work highlights
Representing Vineyard Wind 1 in four lawsuits by project opponents, and also provide strategic advice regarding the permitting and environmental review process.
Advising five refining industry clients in biofuel litigation under the Renewable Fuel Standard, which challenges the EPA’s decisions regarding small refinery exemptions to U.S. “Renewable Fuel Standards” (RFS) that otherwise require the blending of certain amounts of traditional hydrocarbon fuels with renewable fuels.
Representing contract sterilizer Sterigenics, for products supplied by the healthcare and food industries, as it confronts litigation, regulatory and legislative threats arising from the use of ethylene oxide as a sterilizing agent in one of its contract sterilizing facilities.