Sutin, Thayer & Browne is a major presence in the New Mexico natural resources and renewable resources market, with a sound history in environmental law, water rights, and oil and gas issues. Our environment and natural resources lawyers and specialists offer extensive experience and overlapping knowledge in the regulation and administration of all these resources. Our practice includes transactional attorneys and litigators who collaborate to address critical environmental, energy and water issues.
We serve as general counsel to oil and gas producers and mineral rights owners’ groups, advising in entity formation, corporate governance, financing and lending, mergers and acquisitions, and employment law issues. We review and consult with clients regarding oil and gas leases, division orders, operating agreements, and negotiations with property owners, and appearances before the New Mexico Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. We work with landowners, property managers, royalty owners, trustees overseeing mineral rights, and charitable organizations in collecting underpaid royalties and severance taxes. Our clients in this area include individuals, royalty owners, the State of New Mexico and other governmental entities.
Our environmental law practice includes the handling of regulatory matters before local, state, and federal agencies, environmental litigation, and environmental matters related to commercial transactions. We provide advice concerning compliance with environmental laws and regulations, and handle applications for permits, negotiations with the New Mexico Environment Department, and the drafting of stipulations and settlement agreements related to alleged violations. Our environmental litigation experience includes pollution defense matters related to hazardous waste, asbestos, and water quality. We have experience with NEPA and environmental site assessments. We are regularly called upon to handle environmental issues related to real estate and commercial transactions, including assessing environmental risks, advising lenders regarding compliance with environmental laws and regulations, and preparing and reviewing agreements, contractual clauses and indemnifications relating to prevention or mitigation of environmental hazards.
The Firm has extensive experience in defending clients in litigation brought by governmental entities involving allegations of violations of environmental laws, administrative orders of compliance and problems relating to spills and those associated with alleged improper handling, storage and transport of hazardous materials and waste.
We represent clients in defense of and in negotiations with the EPA, DOJ and other regulatory authorities in claims brought under RCRA and related regulations. Our work includes claims and defenses under performance bonds and working out change orders and other contract modifications.
In our water rights practice, we advise clients regarding the nature and extent of their water rights and negotiate and prepare the documentation necessary to buy and sell water rights. We prepare and file with the New Mexico State Engineer the applications necessary to transfer water rights to new owners and to change the place of use or the nature of use of water rights. Our lawyers appear at administrative hearings and application protests and have substantial experience litigating disputes regarding the rights to surface and groundwater.
We represent clients in adjudication lawsuits in the San Juan and San Jose adjudication suits, the Aamodt adjudication, the Zuni adjudication, and the upper-Pecos adjudication. We have represented a number of buyers and sellers in water rights transactions. Our work has included preparation, filing and advocacy related to declarations of water rights, changes of place of use and point of diversion, and changes in ownership; water rights issues with testimony from hydrologists, including the availability of water rights, reduction in groundwater levels and stream depletion resulting from groundwater pumping; determining the quantity and quality of water available; helping lenders, borrowers and public finance authorities understand the role of water rights in secured lending; and analyzing the impact of conditions of approval attached to previous permits.
