Balch & Bingham has tapped environmental regulatory lawyer Bryan Moore to be the second partner in its newly-opened Austin office.
Moore represents industrial, commercial and governmental clients in the energy and refining, solid waste management and chemical manufacturing and distribution sectors.
The Birmingham, Alabama-based law firm expanded into Austin in June with the addition of Todd Kimbrough. Balch also has an office in Houston.
Moore, who received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama, was previously at Beveridge & Diamond, where he practiced for a total of more than 10 years. In between stints at Beveridge & Diamond, Moore also gained eight years of experience at Vinson & Elkins.
The Texas Lawbook discussed the opportunity to be on the ground floor of building Balch’s Austin office with Moore in a Q&A.
The Lawbook: Why did you make the move to Balch?
Moore: Balch is providing legal services to clients that have or may have environmental issues in Texas and beyond that I may be able to help resolve. Joining Balch gives me and my clients the opportunity to work with top-tier attorneys that are thoroughly familiar with the complex regulatory and technical issues facing many industries on multiple fronts and in multiple jurisdictions. Our clients benefit from our multidisciplinary approach and the value proposition we offer – national expertise from a regional cost platform.
Another driver for me making the move to Balch is the opportunity to help grow the firm’s Austin office and presence throughout Texas. While Balch needs no introduction to the Texas market – the firm built an impressive list of Texas-based clients well before it opened its first Texas office in Houston last year – the opportunity to help the firm build out its Austin office and strengthen its position in Texas is very attractive and exciting.
The Lawbook: Have you worked with Todd Kimbrough before?
Moore: I did not have the opportunity to work with Todd before joining Balch, but that opportunity was yet another driver behind my move to Balch. Todd has an impeccable reputation in the energy sector and among the Texas bar, and has vast experience working on energy issues from both the private practice and in-house counsel perspectives. His energy practice and my environmental practice are complementary and our respective lists of clients and prospective clients overlap considerably. My environmental matters often arise in the energy sector, and Todd’s energy sector clients often have environmental needs. It’s a natural fit and the perfect pairing from which to build a new office.
The Lawbook: What are one or two of the most interesting matters you have handled in the past year? What made them interesting?
Moore: I recently assisted a client with a project to build a new facility in Texas. Working with the client and consultants, we first had to determine whether the facility could be permitted as conceived. Once we charted a permitting path forward, I then assisted with the preparation of the permit application and shepherding the application through the administrative process. The permit was hotly contested, which resulted in an administrative hearing on the application in which I represented the client. Once the agency issued the permit, an appeal of the agency’s decision to state court followed. I represented the client at each stage of the state court litigation.
Ultimately, the permit was upheld by the courts and the client was able to commence construction of the new facility. I now counsel the client on keeping the new facility in compliance. This matter was and continues to be among my more interesting ones – and typical of my most interesting matters – in that it allowed me the opportunity to help create something of value and fill a need while also affording me the opportunity to plumb the full depth and extent of my practice – from project development and problem-solving, to regulatory compliance counseling and litigation. The most interesting matters are those that allow you to utilize every tool in your toolbox while also honing some new tools along the way.
The Lawbook: What are the emerging trends or developments in your environmental regulatory practice that you are closely following?
Moore: Under the Biden Administration, we are expecting to see an uptick in federal enforcement of environmental regulations and are closely following new environmental regulatory initiatives aimed at climate change, PFAS and other emerging contaminants, and environmental justice. These regulatory initiatives are ongoing at the state level in many states as well, and we are also tracking coal ash regulation in a number of states. It is a rather dynamic time on the environmental regulatory front, particularly at the federal level following the change in presidential administrations, with a host of Trump-era rulemakings having been stayed, revised, or held up in legal limbo, so keeping an ear always to the ground is an absolute necessity.