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Environmental Real Estate

Location:
Fayetteville, NY, 13066
Posted:
July 09, 2011

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Resume:

KEVIN C. MURPHY

The Wladis Law Firm, P.C.

Syracuse, New York

315-***-****

abg67s@r.postjobfree.com

Qualifications Summary

Accomplished former senior trial attorney with the United States Department of Justice with extensive

private practice experience and expertise in all manner of federal, state and local administrative, civil and

criminal environmental litigation, permitting and compliance matters. Supervised and managed

environmental litigation for 20+ attorney multi state practice group. Also experienced litigating a diverse

range of related matters including: property ownership and use rights, property tax and condemnation

matters, insurance coverage issues, government regulatory matters (OHSA, MHSA, DOT, DOL),

Constitutional claims, and all manner of business and commercial disputes. Proven ability to manage others

and negotiate or litigate large, complex, high profile matters. Excellent writing skills. Licensed to practice in

New York and Connecticut.

Representative Environmental Matters

Serve as special environmental counsel to Onondaga County, New York with respect to the regulation of

federal and state permitted wastewater discharges; multiple federal, state and third party cost recovery and

natural resource damage claims related to mercury contaminated sediments and discharges to Onondaga

Lake, a federal Superfund site; the prosecution of environmental claims in the General Motors Corporation

and Crucible Materials Corporation bankruptcies; the siting and construction of federally mandated sewer

system upgrades, including the acquisition via eminent domain of third party municipal properties

committed to a prior public use and compliance with requirements of the New York State Environmental

Quality Review Act.

Pre acquisition environmental due diligence of a multi facility, multi state manufacturing concern with

respect to both recognized environmental conditions and operational compliance with all applicable federal,

state and local regulatory requirements.

Coordination of an internal environmental audit for multi facility, multi state mining, manufacturing and

transportation concern.

Supervised internal allegations of improper waste management and/or disposal practices and implemented

corrective measures.

Defense of state emissions related enforcement actions and the negotiation of terms and conditions of air

emission permits in New York and Connecticut.

Served as counsel for the redevelopment of a former 100 plus acre brass mill facility into a regional

shopping mall. Successfully managed or resolved issues concerning the management of a hazardous waste

landfill, PCB compliance and enforcement matters, solvent contaminated soil and groundwater, asbestos

abatement, project permitting and the removal of a dam situated on the Mad River in Waterbury,

Connecticut.

For the owner of a site with the highest reported levels of PCB contamination in New York State, negotiated

and managed a multi million dollar solid waste cleanup; negotiated assignable town and village property tax

agreements resulting in a multi million dollar reduction in past and future taxes; successfully negotiated a

resolution or dismissal of multiple federal and state legal actions involving the State of New York, local

municipalities, environmental groups and the owner’s partners and former counsel; negotiated transfer of

the property to the prior owner and party responsible for the PCB contamination thereby terminating the

owner’s potential liability for the estimated $100 million plus contaminated sediment cleanup.

Negotiated the receipt of a CTDEP approved cleanup at a former steel fabrication plant located on the

Bridgeport, CT harbor; secured a no further action decision regarding a substantial subsurface petroleum

release resulting in a $7 million cost savings and secured significant reductions in state proposed magnitude

and scope of heavy metal contamination clean up.

Successfully represented site owner in cost recovery and malpractice actions against, respectively,

the former site owner, Bristol Chromium Corporation, and former counsel related to the cost of

complying with federal and state RCRA landfill closure and post closure requirements due to

nickel contamination of site soil and groundwater resulting from prior site operations.

Negotiated site investigation and corrective action order with CTDEP and settled adjacent property

owner’s toxic tort action related to chromium contaminated soils, groundwater and surface waters.

Selected representations of Superfund potentially responsible parties, individually or on site steering

committees:

Onondaga Lake Superfund Site, Syracuse, NY

Pfohl Brothers Landfill Superfund Site, Cheektowaga, NY

Ramapo Landfill, NY Inactive Waste Site, Ramapo, NY

Troy, Water Street, MGP Site, Troy, NY

Beacon Heights Landfill Superfund Site, Beacon Heights, CT

Laurel Park, Inc. Landfill Superfund Site, Naugatuck, CT

SRSNE and OSL Superfund Sites, Southington, CT

Kellog Deering Well Field Superfund Site, Norwalk, CT

Stringfellow Superfund Site, Glen Avon, CA

Prosecuted criminal violations of the CAA, CWA, RCRA, TSCA, FIFRA and Title 18 crimes as a Senior

Trial Attorney for the United States Department of Justice, Environmental Crimes Section, Washington,

D.C.

Secured post indictment dismissal of multi count felony indictment of publicly owned treatment works

operator.

Resolution of 36 count felony indictment for alleged illegal disposal of hazardous waste with

dismissal of all charges against individual defendant and plea to a single non felony, non

misdemeanor violation by corporate defendant.

Prepared multi state, multi media compliance manuals and conducted training on federal government

contractor obligations sufficient to prevent client placement on the federal contractor debarment list due to

individual employee violations of the Clean Air Act.

Representative Non Environmental Matters

Served as counsel for Communities Against Regional Interconnect, a coalition of New York State county

governments, individuals and environmental groups, in their successful challenge to FERC’s “overly

expansive” rule making with respect to the scope of FERC’s backstop permitting authority in national

interest electric transmission corridors under Federal Power Act § 216. Piedmont Environmental Council v

FERC, 558 F.3d 304 (4th Cir. 2009).

Secured injunction striking unconstitutional town ordinance restricting outdoor advertising in violation of

the First Amendment. Park Outdoor Advertising of New York, Inc. v. Town of Onondaga, New York, ___

F.Supp.2d ___ (N.D.N.Y. 2010)

Successfully appealed real and personal property taxes on behalf of NRG Energy, Inc. power generating

facilities in Devon and Middletown, CT

Successfully prosecuted breach of contract claim utilizing the Virginia Uniform Computer Information

Transactions Act under the choice of law provisions in the contract.

Representative Clients

Clients have included independent power producers; manufacturers; mining, industrial and waste

management firms; construction companies; local governments and authorities; healthcare facilities;

schools; real estate developers and individuals. Representative clients: Alper Holdings USA, Inc.; Avery

Dennison Corporation; Communities Against Regional Interconnect; Hoosier Magnetics, Inc.; New

Waterbury, Ltd.; Northrop Grumman Corporation; NRG Energy, Inc.; Peckham Materials, Inc.; United

States Steel Corporation; Onondaga County, NY, and Rockland County (NY) Sewer District No. 1.

Legal Experience

The Wladis Law Firm, P.C., Syracuse, NY current

Gilberti Stinziano Heintz & Smith, P.C. Syracuse, NY 1994 2008

Pullman & Comley, Bridgeport, CT 1990 1994

Carmody & Torrance, Waterbury, CT 1988 1990

Senior Trial Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice,

Environmental Crimes Section, Washington, DC 1985 1988

Assistant District Attorney, Kings County, NY 1979 1984

Education

University of Virginia School of Law

Syracuse University, Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, in economics

Teaching/Awards/Publications

Adjunct Faculty, Syracuse University School of Law. Environmental Criminal Enforcement Seminar (1995

2000).

Instructor, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Glynco, GA (1986 88).

Recipient, United States Department of Justice Special Achievement Award, March 1987 and March 1988.

Murphy and Yen, “Trustee Liability for the Cost of Site Environmental Clean Up” 110 Banking L.J. 467

(1993).

Murphy and Yen, “Court Limits the Potential of Trustee Liability for the Cost of Site Environmental

Cleanup” 111 Banking L.J. 89 (1994).



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