Page 31 - 2018 October Bar Journal

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

tify, navigate and weave these broader issues into who can help in-house teams anticipate and man- specific terms that need to be negotiated (e.g.,
the overall environmental strategy is invaluable. age (with internal product stewardship, engineer- price reductions due to contamination, escrow/
Consider, for example, a “simple” product line ing, and sales & marketing teams) these rapidly hold backs to fund remedial work, work-party
move from one facility to another. The litany of is- expanding areas of “environmental law.” responsibility for cleanup, cleanup levels/closure
sues to consider on the “E” side includes the usual requirements, etc.). We invite our outside counsel
suspects: Is the receiving location owned or leased? Leave technical calls to in-house environmen- to extend that brain-partnership with our techni-
Has environmental due diligence been performed tal engineers. cal teams, which will result in more appropriate
on the property and what are the results? Does the We offer this in the spirit of constructive criticism and cost effective advice to the company.
receiving location have all required environmen- — the undersigned are lawyers. We’ve picked up We end where we began, by saying we of-
tal permits and approvals for an on-time start up a few technical knowledge points along the way, fer these observations in the spirit of growing
along with emission controls and qualified staff? but are by no means qualified experts. At Eaton, and strengthening our partnership with outside
These environmental issues need to be considered we have the luxury of support from a world-class counsel. With your help on these fronts, the
in parallel path and alignment with other critical Corporate EHS technical team — a crew of envi- Company is assured of more powerful, account-
items, such as zoning, utility supplies, machine ronmental operational (air, water, waste, energy/ able, and effective legal advice and counsel.
transfer/customs/safeguarding requirements, cus- greenhouse gas) and remediation experts. These
tomer approvals, production needs, and related persons know pollution control, remedial set-
commitments. As a consequence, the in-house tings, and “how things work” in the plant. We
and outside environmental legal teams need to are all more effective lawyers if we lean on an ac-
ensure they have a broader lens on these intersect- tive partnership with our technical counterparts.
ing points as they provide their “environmental” They provide not only the substantive expertise
recommendations to the business. on the relevant topic area, but also a good reality
check on what makes sense or not from the legal Lisa Sutton, Jill Bautista, and Katy Franz are
The evolution of the in-house environmental end. For example, when it comes to property as- attorneys within the Environment, Health &
practice. sessments on a potential acquisition for a long- Safety practice group of Eaton’s Law Department
Consistent with the above, the typical in-house term industrial property, a legal recommenda- in Cleveland. Lisa has been a CMBA member
environmental practice has changed over the tion to do a Phase I ESA may not make sense, nor since 1995 and can be reached at (440) 523-4358
years, exploding into other areas such as sustain- is it cost-effective. Rather, the tech team may ad- or lisadsutton@eaton.com. Jill has been a member
ability and product-related compliance issues vise going straight to a Phase II ESA where actual since 2011 and can be reached at (216) 523-4391 or
(such as EU REACH/ROHS, California Proposi- soil/groundwater samples are taken to know the jillabautista@eaton.com. Katy has been a member
tion 65, and other laws governing the chemical extent of contamination on the property, any spe- since 2010 and can be reached at (440) 523-4785 or
content of products). We seek outside counsel cific liabilities versus remote AOCs, and any deal- katymfranz@eaton.com.

Welcome joy kennedy Charlotte Weatherford rhodes

Cuyahoga County Public Defender Office
BakerHostetler
nEW MeMbers Martha C. lee renee T. richard
Cuyahoga Community College
donald j. richardson
Susan M. Macken
anthony Santiago
rachael aufdenkampe Matthew d. golish Cleveland Association of Paralegals Sutter O’Connell
Morgan Mackovjak
Meyers, Roman, Friedberg & Lewis McDonald Hopkins LLC BakerHostetler
amanda Baker katherine Hall victor Manolache andrew Schriver
BakerHostetler
Stephen k. Blake nathan Todd Horning Sean E. McIntyre ashton Shaner
Lorain County Domestic BakerHostetler BakerHostetler
Relations Court
aikaterini Houston Gregory Anthony Peltz, II laveta Shirannette Steele
Sydney alixandra dawson OPBA Eighth District Court of Appeals

Brian jacobson anthony Bernard Ponikvar Elchanan g. Stern
david dobo BakerHostetler
nolan T. james Sonja C. rajki joi lynn Taylor Powell
Nathaniel T. Goldfinger Cavitch, Familo & Durkin Co., LPA The MetroHealth System Child & Family Advocates of Cuyahoga County
BakerHostetler

OctOber 2018 Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Journal | 31