We are proud to announce that eight lateral attorneys from Hunsucker Goodstein recently joined our environmental, litigation, and Native affairs practices. As part of this strategic expansion, the firm has added a San Francisco Bay area office, further enhancing our ability to service clients in the Western United States. In addition to deepening the firm’s environmental and litigation practices, the group brings new capabilities in the areas of insurance recovery and strategic advice on the environmental aspects of transactions.

The team has an established record as lead counsel in successful litigation and alternative dispute resolution matters, and considerable trial experience related to environmental statutes and common law, insurance coverage, property damage, cost recovery, contract disputes, and environmental risk assessment associated with transactions.

These lateral additions are the latest in a series of strategic hires designed to further enhance Van Ness Feldman’s ability to deliver outstanding service and results to our clients.  Biographical information is below.

Michael Goodstein, Partner (DC) - With over 30 years of experience, Michael’s practice includes environmental issues arising under federal, state, local, and tribal environmental laws, including regulatory matters, natural resources, property damage, and related insurance coverage. While serving for 12 years as a trial attorney and senior attorney at the Department of Justice, Michael represented the United States on a number of landmark cases under the Superfund law, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act. 

Brian Zagon, Partner (CA) - Brian Zagon has nearly three decades of experience assisting clients in the environmental counseling, environmental litigation and insurance coverage arenas. He represents clients in environmental litigation matters in federal and state court, including defense against contamination claims and affirmative cost-recovery claims. He also has experience resolving multi-party cases brought under CERCLA, RCRA, the California Health and Safety Code, the California Water Code, and other federal and state environmental laws. In the oil and gas sector, he has helped clients with matters involving business disputes, contractual indemnity obligations and insurance coverage for environmental and contractor disputes. 

Anne Lynch, Partner (DC) - Anne represents both private and government clients and Indian Tribes on a variety of environmental litigation and transactional issues involving the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, CERCLA (Superfund), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and the Endangered Species Act, as well as state and local environmental laws.

Allison McAdam, Partner (CA) - For 15 years, Allison has represented clients on environmental contamination and insurance coverage matters. Specifically, Allison focuses on environmental and insurance coverage issues for a wide range of businesses and industries, including oil producers, refineries and pipelines, industrial and retail dry cleaners, recyclers, paper, foundry and fireworks manufacturers and automotive manufacturers. Allison also works with owners of contaminated properties to oversee remediation, including working with state and federal agencies. 

Andrew Cooper, Partner (DC) - Drew has over twenty-five years of experience with environmental law. In addition to his decades of work as a litigator, Drew has considerable experience advising clients on the environmental aspects of transactions and guiding clients around environmental challenges to an advantageous closing. 

Dana Stotsky*, Senior Counsel (DC) - Dana’s practice includes all areas of environmental administrative law, including permitting, licensing, compliance assurance, responding to regulatory inquiries, notices of violation, and participating in rulemaking proceedings. From 1987 to 2014, Dana was a Senior Enforcement Attorney for Toxics with the U.S. EPA regional office in Denver where he was the lead prosecuting attorney for TSCA (toxics), FIFRA (pesticide) and EPCRA (reporting) matters and also served as a litigation consultant to EPA offices nationwide. 

Kaki Schmidt*, Senior Counsel (DC) - Kaki’s practice focuses on citizen suit enforcement under the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and private party cost recovery under the Comprehensive Environmental Recovery, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA or Superfund). She is a former Trial Attorney in the Environmental Enforcement Section of the United States Department of Justice.  

Justin Panitchpakdi, Associate (CA) - Justin helps clients navigate difficult environmental and insurance coverage matters and has represented them in federal and state courts, in mediation, and administrative enforcement actions to help resolve their issues. 

Lorielle Morgan, Paralegal (DC) - Lorielle supports environmental litigation and insurance recovery practice attorneys in the Washington, DC office with management on complex litigation cases in federal, state and tribal courts nationwide. She provides legal and organizational assistance on a range of environmental matters, including regulatory issues, natural resource and property damage, alternative dispute resolution, related insurance coverage, and cost recovery claims.   

Kristine Parker, Paralegal (CA) - With over 15 years of experience, Kristine provides support to the environmental litigation and insurance recovery practices in the firm’s San Francisco Bay Area office in all aspects of case management, legal assistance and civil litigation. She assists attorneys with managing cases from inception through trial, assisting with drafting legal documents including briefs and written discovery, deposition preparation, exhibit and witness lists, legal research, and legal calendaring. She has a thorough knowledge of California state and federal court rules.