As Chair of the Environmental Section of the Firm, Elizabeth Mack is the leader of one of the largest groups of dedicated environmental practitioners in a major law firm. Ms. Mack has substantial experience in environmental compliance, environmental litigation, and environmental transactional work. Recognized in Chambers USA and named in The Best Lawyers in America for Environmental Law, Ms. Mack has substantial experience in state and federal environmental matters, including such diverse issues as the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, CERCLA, Endangered Species Act, RCRA, the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), NEPA, and the Safe Drinking Water Act. Known for keeping business interests in mind at all times, Ms. Mack employs creative solutions to resolve environmental issues.
Ms. Mack is a Chair Emeritus of the Litigation Section of the State Bar of Texas, and she is a member of the Locke Lord Board of Directors.
Ms. Mack has been honored on numerous occasions for her pro bono work in the community, including being named “Outstanding Law Firm Pro Bono Coordinator” by the Dallas Bar Association. As part of her pro bono efforts, she has served on the Texas Supreme Court Task Force to Expand Legal Service Delivery to the Poor and is on the Board of Directors of Texas Appleseed, a policy based pro-bono organization dedicated to providing equal access to justice. She is currently representing on a pro bono basis two citizens groups in Libby, Montana related to the Libby Asbestos Superfund sites.
Representative Experience
- Environmental Transactional Work -- Ms. Mack represents institutions in a variety of transactions with an emphasis on analyzing and managing environmental risks and liabilities arising in the course of corporate, oil and gas, and lending transactions. Known for practicality and keeping business interests in mind, Ms. Mack also counsels clients regarding the environmental issues associated with the purchase, sale, and development of, and -- when circumstances dictate -- foreclosure on, all types of real estate, including contaminated “Brownfield” sites. Ms. Mack facilitates in all environmental aspects of the transaction, from identifying environmental issues, to assessing risks, to recommending methods to manage risk and resolve issues, to developing documents and transactional structure to help reduce the potential for environmental liability. Ms Mack regularly analyzes environmental insurance policies and assists in securing appropriate insurance, where circumstances warrant.
- Environmental Permitting and Audits -- Ms. Mack regularly represents clients with respect to permit issues, internal environmental audits, environmental risk management and mitigation, environmental training, and management of governmental and internal investigations. As part of her compliance work, Ms. Mack has assisted manufacturers (including steel, supplies, and parts manufacturers), plant operators, pipeline owners, energy generators and suppliers, transportation providers, and renewable energy concerns regarding development of industrial facilities, permit compliance issues, including state and federal air permitting, new source review, greenhouse gas permit review, acid rain permit review, 404 permits, wastewater permits, SPCC plans, and endangered species review, as well as enforcement issues. Ms. Mack is currently counseling clients regarding hydraulic fracturing issues, including but not limited to EPA's current drinking water studies, and disclosure issues.
- Environmental Compliance Work -- Ms. Mack is currently leading site remediation activities in California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Texas, and Virginia, and working with the environmental agencies in each of those states to obtain the appropriate environmental resolution for each particular site. She is currently representing or has represented U.S. clients with respect to site remediation activities in Italy, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Germany, and France. Ms. Mack has worked on remediation activities in numerous other states and in other countries. Additionally, she routinely works with the United States Army Corps of Engineers on wetlands issues, and with the United States Environmental Protection Agency on PCB issues.
- Environmental Risk Management and Mitigation -- Ms. Mack frequently works with environmental risk management and mitigation issues. She assesses environmental risk in all types of industries, from newspaper printing to real estate to oil and gas pipelines to manufacturing, and develops plans to eliminate or reduce the environmental risks.
- Environmental Litigation -- Ms. Mack is equally at home in the courtroom, in arbitration, and in dispute resolution. She recently resolved a major pipeline jet-fuel sub-surface release on Cape Cod, Massachusetts against the United States Department of Justice and private parties for her client. Ms. Mack is currently negotiating with EPA Region 8 on alleged impacts of oil field operators on drinking water sources in Native American tribal lands, and she is representing a client in NEPA and Endangered Species Act (ESA) litigation in federal court in San Antonio. She represented Cooper Industries in the district court and the Fifth Circuit in Aviall Services, Inc. v. Cooper Industries, 263 F.3d 134 (2001), reversed en banc, 312 F.3d 677 (5th Cir. 2002), reversed, 543 U.S. 157 (2004), which created new law on CERCLA cost recovery actions. Ms. Mack was also one of the lead counsel in the definitive case in the Fifth Circuit on environmental indemnity claims, Fina, Inc. v. ARCO, 200 F.3d 266 (5th Cir. 2000). Ms. Mack regularly represents clients in federal and state Superfund and cost recovery actions, both in agency negotiations and in court, and has served as chair of legal committees at such sites as the Region 9 EPA-led Casmalia Superfund Site in California.
- NEPA -- Ms. Mack regularly represents clients on National Environmental Policy Act issues. She has assisted gas pipeline owners, transportation authorities, and airlines in preparing and/or consulting on Environmental Assessments (EA) and Environmental Impact Statements (EIS). She works with consultants, federal and state resource agencies, and citizens groups to bring consensus, order, and speed to the NEPA process. Ms. Mack has also been asked to step in later in the process to defend NEPA and environmental justice (Title VI) challenges before administrative agencies and in federal court. Representative NEPA pipeline work includes consulting on EIS work associated with a natural gas pipeline in Colorado. Representative transportation matters include working with state and federal agencies and resource agencies on drafting and review of EAs and EISs for highway projects in Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio, Texas, and EA work associated with airport runway expansions.
- Environmental Indemnity Work -- Ms. Mack has substantial experience on environmental indemnity issues. She is currently representing a client with respect to contractual indemnity issues related to 64 national and international manufacturing sites.
- Property Condition Issues -- Ms. Mack routinely advises clients on commercial and residential building management issues, including indoor air quality (IAQ), mold, radon, asbestos (ACM), and lead based paint (LBP) issues. Among other things, she structures and manages programs for regular IAQ assessments of entire property portfolios and for one-off evaluations of indoor space based on specific concerns (all designed to mitigate risk and potential liability), advises on commercial and tenant relations, assists with development of and compliance with operations and maintenance (O&M) programs, and manages property condition abatement and remediation projects.
Education
- J.D., Harvard Law School, 1988
- B.A., with honors, Northwestern University, 1985
Bar Admissions
Admitted To Practice
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
Publications & Presentations
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Co-Author,
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Locke Lord QuickStudy: D.C. Circuit Throws Out EPA’s Cross State Air Pollution Rule & Related Federal Implementation Plans
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Locke Lord
(August 23, 2012)
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Co-Author,
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Locke Lord QuickStudy: Fifth Circuit Smacks Down EPA’s Disapproval of Texas’ Flexible Air Permitting Program
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Locke Lord
(August 16, 2012)
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Co-Author,
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Locke Lord QuickStudy: Don’t Mess with the Water in Texas
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Locke Lord
(March 7, 2012)
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Co-Author,
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Locke Lord QuickStudy: Trash in the 21st Century: Illinois Mandates Recycling of E-Waste
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Locke Lord
(January 23, 2012)
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Co-Author,
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Locke Lord QuickStudy: EPA Forges Ahead with New Emission Rules for Power Plants
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Locke Lord
(January 3, 2011)
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Co-Author ,
"Avoid Environmental Issues in Foreclosures,"
Texas Lawyer
(March 21, 2011)
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"Brochure: Environmental,"
Locke Lord
(October 14, 2010)
Professional History
- Partner, Locke Lord LLP (1995 - Present)
- Board of Directors, Locke Lord LLP (2011 - Present)
- Chair, Environmental Section of Locke Lord LLP (2007 - Present)
- Vice Chair, Practice Development Committee of Locke Lord LLP (2009 - Present)
- Law Clerk, Honorable Sidney A. Fitzwater, United States District Judge for the Northern District of Texas (1988 - 1989)
Professional Affiliations & Achievements
- Named, The Best Lawyers in America, Environmental Law (2013)
- Named in Top Rated Lawyers Guide to Energy, Environmental & Natural Resources Law by Corporate Counsel magazine (2012)
- Recognized in Chambers USA for Environmental Law (2009-2012)
- Named, Best Lawyers in Texas, Texas Lawyer© (2005-2013)
- Named a Best Business Lawyer in Dallas, D Magazine (2009)
- Named, Super Lawyer, Corporate Counsel Edition of SuperLawyers for Environmental Law
- Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation
- Pro Bono Coordinator of the Year, Dallas Bar Association (2004)
- Fellow, Dallas Bar Foundation
Community Leadership
- Chair, Litigation Section, State Bar of Texas (8,000 members) (2008 - 2009)
- Board of Directors, Texas Appleseed, (2007 - Present)
- Editorial Board, The Advocate (2002 - 2007)
- Texas Supreme Court Task Force, Expanding Legal Services to the Poor (2006 - Present)
- Past Chair, Firm-wide Pro Bono Committee
- Young Leaders, American Council on Germany
- Magistrate Judge Selection Panel, Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division
- Environmental Health Advisory Commission, City of Dallas
- Criminal Justice Panel, Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division
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