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ACOEL Officers

ACOEL Officers

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Kevin Murray

President
Kevin Murray is a partner at Holland & Hart’s Salt Lake City office. His practice focuses on managing environmental liabilities, repurposing real estate assets, and creating value through property remediation and planning. He is known for his strategic approach to crafting innovative solutions that deliver maximum value for clients ranging from the largest international corporations to individual landowners. He brings innovative and unique resolutions to complex contamination issues, especially involving multi-jurisdictional and multi-agency matters (particularly EPA and NRC), in the real estate, mining, energy, petroleum, nuclear, and manufacturing industries. Kevin can be reached at KRMurray@hollandhart.com.
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Tracy Hester

President-Elect
Professor Hester teaches environmental law at the University of Houston Law Center. His research focuses on the innovative application of environmental laws to emerging technologies and unanticipated risks, including climate engineering, deep decarbonization (particularly in energy production), nanotechnologies, artificial intelligence, and advanced wind, solar, and other renewable power systems. Prior to joining the University of Houston Law Center, Prof. Hester served as a partner in Bracewell LLP for sixteen years and led that firm's Houston environmental group. In Fall 2019, Prof. Hester taught the first U.S. law school course on Climate Intervention Law, which focused on emerging climate engineering technologies and legal challenges. He also teaches classes on Environmental Law, Water Law, Natural Resource Damages Liability, Environmental Law in Oil & Gas, Climate Change Liability and Litigation, Environmental Enforcement, Emerging Technologies and Environmental Law, and Advanced Hazardous Waste Law. He originated and teaches an innovative Environmental Practicum that matches students with multiple leading environmental attorneys to work on practical projects and to develop innovative environmental initiatives. He also teaches the first year course on Statutory Interpretation and Regulatory Practice. Prof. Hester is currently the co-director and a co-founder of the Center for Carbon Management in Energy at the University of Houston. During the summer of 2014, Prof. Hester served as the interim Director of the North America Commission on Environmental Cooperation's Submission on Environmental Matters Unit in Montreal, Canada. The Environmental Law Institute also named him as its Environmental Scholar in Residence for 2015. Prof. Hester was inducted into the American College of Environmental Lawyers in 2015 (and named a Regent in 2018), elected as a member of the American Law Institute in 2004, and named the Top Environmental Lawyer in Houston in 2011 by Best Lawyers of America. He was also elected to the Council of the American Bar Associations Section on Environment, Energy and Resources (SEER) in 2011 through 2014, and he currently sits on SEER's Climate Change Task Force. Prof. Hester is the past chair of SEER's Climate Change, Sustainable Development and Ecological Services Committee, its Special Committee on Congressional Relations, and its Environmental Enforcement and Crimes Committee .
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Robin Craig

Secretary
ROBIN KUNDIS CRAIG is the Robert C. Packard Trustee Chair in Law at the USC Gould School of Law, where she teaches Environmental Law, Water Law, Ocean and Coastal Law, Toxic Torts, Civil Procedure, and Administrative Law. Craig specializes in all things water, including climate change adaptation in the water sector; the food-water-energy nexus; water quality and water allocation law; marine protected areas and marine spatial planning; and the intersection of freshwater and ocean and coastal law. She is the author, co-author, or editor of 12 books—including textbooks on Environmental Law, Water Law, and Toxic Torts—and over 100 law or science journal articles and book chapters. She can be reached at robinkcraig@gmail.com.
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Jessica Merrigan

Treasurer
Jessie is a partner in the Kansas City and Overland Park offices of Spencer Fane and currently serves as Co-Chair of the Environment and Energy Practice Group. She counsels clients on environmental matters regarding regulatory requirements including permitting, compliance audits and enforcement response. She also assists clients in evaluation of environmental liabilities associated with real estate and corporate transactions, and represents clients in the litigation of environmental claims, including contribution claims under the federal Superfund law.
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Kenneth Warren

Immediate Past President
Kenneth J. Warren, founding member of Warren Environmental Counsel LLC, practices environmental law with a concentration in water law including water quality, water resources, and interstate commissions. He served as Chair of the ABA Section of Environment, Energy and Resources in Bar Year 2003-2004 and as an industry representative on EPA's National Environmental Justice Advisory Council from 2000-2006. His practice involves representing private and government clients in regulatory and litigation matters pertaining to water, waste, air, environmental cleanups and sustainability. Ken can be reached at kwarren@warrenenvcounsel.com.

Past ACOEL Officers

Message from the President