J. Michelle Hickey is a partner in the Environmental and Land Use Department of the Los Angeles Office of Holland & Knight. Ms. Hickey's practice involves the representation of clients in environmental and land-use litigation, transactional and compliance matters. Ms. Hickey has represented clients in state and federal environmental and land-use litigation, including cases involving CERCLA, RCRA, the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") and other environmental statutory and common law claims. In addition, Ms. Hickey has provided advice and represented clients in transactional matters relating to the disposition and development of contaminated property, including negotiating and/or drafting prospective purchaser agreements and environmental insurance policies.
Ms. Hickey has represented clients before such agencies as the United States and California Environmental Protection Agencies, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Regional Water Quality Control Boards, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, the South Coast Air Quality Management District and various California counties and cities in connection with such matters as notices of violation, applications for variances, de minimis settlements, consent decrees and applications for building and other permits.
Ms. Hickey previously handled environmental and land-use matters for the City of Commerce in California, including representing the city in environmental and land-use litigation and environmental enforcement of city laws. Ms. Hickey also served as temporary in-house environmental counsel for a gas and electric company, where she handled federal and state environmental compliance, litigation and transactional matters, including negotiating compliance issues with the South Coast Air Quality Management District, reviewing and drafting contracts to operate the electrical system of a former military training base and to sell air pollution credits.
Ms. Hickey has lectured and written on environmental and land-use topics, including co-authoring An Overview of Regulatory Compliance and Legal Liability Issues in the Safety, Health, and Asset Protection: Management Essentials, Second Edition published by CRC Press LLC.