Beth has focused her practice on litigation concerning environmental contamination and real estate. Her experience as a former chemist and environmental regulator adds an understanding of complex science and engineering to her representations of public agencies and landowners.
Beth has handled major environmental contamination cases throughout California, especially matters related to groundwater contamination and alleged violations of CERCLA. She has worked on some of the highest-profile environmental cases in the state of California, including handling discovery regarding the science of Chromium VI contamination in Hinkley, California and MTBE contamination of California ground water aquifers. She has represented clients in state and federal courts in California, as well as before the Second District Court of Appeal, and in bench and jury trials.
Prior to attending law school, Beth worked as an environmental regulator with the California Integrated Waste Management Board (now Cal-Recycle) regulating solid waste landfills. She also was an R&D chemist developing capillary gas chromatography phases for J&W Scientific (now a division of Agilent). Beth's well-rounded scientific training also includes her undergraduate degree in biology.
Beth also has handled commercial litigation, consumer class actions, securities fraud, and wage and hour. She has applied her scientific background and her understanding of environmental issues to real estate transactions and disputes. Among her recent successes, Beth successfully put a long-negotiated amendment to a Federal Facilities Agreement to bed for a client. The matter is ongoing.
Publications
"California Law Doesn’t Allow Food Waste To Go Into Landfills, But Few Know About It," Daily Journal (May 2022)
"European Rulings Show New Approach to Climate Change Cases," Daily Journal (June 2021)
"Uncertainty on Maui: How Will Functional Equivalence Work in the Real World?," co-author, Water Law Alert (April 2020)
"PFAS – A Primer for Real Estate Lawyers on a New Environmental Risk," co-author, American College of Real Estate Lawyers News and Notes (April 2020)
"Governor's Executive Order N-42-20 Restricts the Ability of Water Service Providers to Shut Off Water Service," Government Law Alert (April 2020)
"New PFAS Regulations Work Dramatic Changes to California's Drinking Water Supplies — With More Changes Likely to Follow," co-author, Water Law Alert (February 2020)
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Presentations
"PFAS: From Common Use to Concern," Environmental Law Institute Master Class (May 2020)
"The Road to and From Los Angeles' Measure S," Luskin School of Public Policy, UCLA (February 2017)
"Measure JJJ Panel Discussion," (2017)
""reCode LA," (2017)
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Press
"Hanson Bridgett Adds Attorneys," Los Angeles Business Journal (February 2020)
"Claire Collins Leads Five-Attorney Team from Lewis Brisbois to Hanson Bridgett," Daily Journal (February 2020)
"On the Move: Tracking the Ins and Outs of California Lawyers," The Recorder (January 2020)