Mar

26-27

37th Water Law Conference

Grand Hyatt Denver, 8 AM MDT

The ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources' 37th Water Law Conference will take place in Denver, Colorado.

Masters Keynote Speakers:
Deborah E. Greenspan, Blank Rome LLP, Special Master, Michigan Flint Water Cases
Kristin A. Linsley, Gibson Dunn, Special Master, South Carolina v North Carolina, Supreme Court Original Jurisdiction No. 138.

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics/Professionalism

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Available for credit

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics

Status:

Available for credit

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.25 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Available for credit

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Available for credit

8.75 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.25 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

8.75 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Legal Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

12.30 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

03/26/2022
Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.80 credit hours

Available until:

03/26/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Available for credit

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics

Status:

Available for credit

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Applied for

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/12/2020
Enhanced Ethics

Status:

Applied for

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/12/2020

12.30 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Status:

Self apply

1.80 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Self apply

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

05/23/2021
General

Status:

Approved

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

05/23/2021

10.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

Professional Responsibility

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2021
General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2021

10.25 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

8.75 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Professional Responsibility

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Status:

Self apply

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019
General

Status:

Self apply

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Status:

Self apply

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019
General

Status:

Self apply

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019

12.30 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Status:

Self apply

1.80 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019
General

Status:

Self apply

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019

10.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Applied for upon completion

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019
General

Status:

Applied for upon completion

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019

10.30 total credit hours including

Ethics or Professional Responsibility

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.80 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

12.30 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.80 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professionalism

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.50 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

9.00 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Available for credit

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics/Professionalism

Status:

Available for credit

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

12.30 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professionalism

Status:

Reciprocity

1.80 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Reciprocity

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics/Professionalism

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

12.00 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professionalism

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Areas of Professional Practice

Status:

Approved

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

01/12/2022
Ethics/Professionalism

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

01/12/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

12.50 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Approved

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics

Status:

Approved

2.00 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2021
General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2021

12.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Applied for upon completion

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019
General

Status:

Applied for upon completion

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

01/12/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

01/12/2022

10.20 total credit hours including

Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Status:

Self apply

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019
General

Status:

Self apply

8.70 credit hours

Available until:

12/31/2019

10.25 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Applied for

8.75 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics/Professionalism

Status:

Applied for

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2021
General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2021

10.25 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.75 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

8.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

10.50 total credit hours including

Legal Ethics and Professionalism

Status:

Applied for

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

10/31/2019
General

Status:

Applied for

9.00 credit hours

Available until:

10/31/2019

10.25 total credit hours including

Law & Legal Procedure

Status:

Approved

8.75 credit hours

Available until:

02/24/2022
Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/24/2022

12.30 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.80 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
General

Status:

Approved

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

12.00 total credit hours including

Ethics

Status:

Approved

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/12/2020
General

Status:

Approved

10.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/12/2020

10.25 total credit hours including

General

Status:

Self apply

8.75 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022
Ethics

Status:

Self apply

1.50 credit hours

Available until:

02/11/2022

$775

NON-MEMBERS

$700

MEMBERS

$600

SECTION MEMBERS

Rate

37th Water Law Conference

Format

In-Person

Location

Grand Hyatt Denver

Date

Mar 26 - 27, 2019

2019-03-26T08:00:00-06:00 2019-03-27T17:00:00-06:00 37th Water Law Conference The ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources' 37th Water Law Conference will take place in Denver, Colorado. Masters Keynote Speakers: Deborah E. Greenspan, Blank Rome LLP, Special Master, Michigan Flint Water Cases Kristin A. Linsley, Gibson Dunn, Special Master, South Carolina v North Carolina, Supreme Court Original Jurisdiction No. 138.

Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources

Filter By Date

Time

Session Name

Track

Price

06:30 PM - 09:30 PM

Taste of SEER (Dine Arounds)

Description:

You are invited to join old and new friends for a dutch-treat dinner. Reservation have been made at several restaurants in the downtown Denver area, near the conference hotel. Each dinner will be organized by a Section leader. This is a great opportunity to meet new people, eat great food, and have lively discussions. More information to come on how to register.

08:15 AM - 09:30 AM

East, West, Colorado, and the Colorado River

Free

Description:

Don’t miss this discussion on the foundations of water law, with insights for both new and experienced practitioners. This session will summarize the basics as well as provide informative updates on topics with potentially broad applicability in the era of increasing water demand and less reliable water supplies. Panelists will consider the law governing the Colorado River and features of Colorado’s unique form of prior appropriation that provides a valuable model on several issues facing all prior appropriation states and states struggling with groundwater and stream water interactions.

Moderator:
Bennett L. Bearden, Chief of Staff, Special Assistant to the State Geologist, Geological Survey of Alabama, and Associate Research Professor, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL

Speakers:
Robert Abrams, Professor of Law, Florida A&M University College of Law, Orlando, FL
Jennifer Crandell, Special Counsel Attorney General of Nevada, Colorado River Commission of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV
Sarah Klahn, Somach, Simmons, and Dunn, Denver, CO

09:45 AM - 11:00 AM

Interstate Disputes/US Supreme Court Case Update

Description:

Every water practitioner needs to understand the principles of interstate water apportionment, including equitable apportionment and enforcement by the U.S. Supreme Court, compacts, and apportionment by Congress. Over the past decade, the Supreme Court has accepted an increasing number of interstate lawsuits under the Court’s original and exclusive jurisdiction. While these cases pit one state against another, they take place within a wider context of state and federal regulation and litigation, including state administration and federal water-supply management. The panel will analyze that context in connection with three pending Supreme Court cases: Florida v. Georgia, an equitable apportionment case over surface water, Mississippi v. Tennessee, an equitable apportionment case over groundwater, and Texas v. New Mexico & Colorado, a case to enforce the Rio Grande Compact. Attendees will hear how these cases may result in regulation initiatives or further litigation.

Moderator:
Greg Hobbs, Senior Water Judge, Colorado Courts, Denver, CO

Speakers:
Heather Elliott, Professor of Law, University of Alabama School of Law, Tuscaloosa, AL
Sandra Zellmer, Professor of Law, University of Montana School of Law, Missoula, MT

11:15 AM - 12:30 PM

The Culverts Case: Interference with Tribal Fishing Rights by Government Stormwater Diversion and Treatment Systems

Description:

The Stevens Treaties, signed by several Pacific Northwest tribes in the mid-1850s, reserved tribal rights to fish “at all usual and accustomed grounds” in common with settlers. Interpretation of this provision has been subjected to litigation for over a century, including the 1905 U.S. Supreme Court case, United States v. Winans, and the Court’s affirmation of 1974’s Boldt Decision (United States v. Washington), which guaranteed tribes up to 50 percent of the region’s fisheries. The “Culverts Case” is the most recent sub-proceeding of United States v. Washington to reach the Supreme Court, affirming a federal court injunction requiring the State of Washington to remove or retrofit hundreds of road culverts blocking critical fish runs. Panelists and attendees will explore how the Culverts Case applies federal Indian law concepts to water quality and habitat protection—and consider how tribes might leverage off-reservation fishing and other treaty rights for greater water quality protection. Attendees will learn to apply concepts of federal Indian law and treaty interpretation to the broader context of matters in water quality and habitat protection.

Moderator:
Ilene Munk, Foley & Mansfield, Portland, OR

Speakers:
Jay Geck, Deputy Solicitor General, Washington, Office of the Attorney General, Olympia, WA
Cassie Phillips, Director, Private Environmental Governance Initiative, Environmental Law Institute, Washington, DC
Ann E. Tweedy, Attorney, Muckleshoot Indian Tribe Legal Department, Auburn, WA

12:30 PM - 02:00 PM

Luncheon

Description:
Roundtable Speakers:
Deborah E. Greenspan, Special Master, Blank Rome LLP
Kristin A. Linsley, Special Master, Gibson Dunn

02:00 PM - 03:15 PM

Impacts to Freshwater Resources from Drought and Sea Level Rise

Description:

Sea level rise and drought are becoming major concerns to those dependent on groundwater or other freshwater resources. This panel will review the scientific issues and discuss the legal implications of dealing with gradual encroachment of saline water into aquifers providing fresh water for potable, agricultural, and other uses vital to the public health, safety, and welfare. This novel and important session will address such issues as the scientific concerns surrounding salt water intrusion and the upwelling of deeper water with brackish characteristics. Legal issues will be explored and planning for alternatives to the traditional sources now at risk will be discussed. This panel will offer attendees a unique new tool for judges and litigants to make sense of groundwater science in litigation—the National Judicial College’s new Adjudicating Groundwater bench book. The Section’s collaboration with the National Judicial College and its Dividing the Waters program allows the Section to offer this resource to conference attendees.

Moderator:
Robin K. Craig, James I. Farr Presidential Endowed Professor of Law, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law, Salt Lake City, UT

Speakers:

Greg Bengtson, Clark, Mize & Linville, Chtd, Salina, KS

Michael Sklash, Senior Hydrogeologist, Dragun Corporation, Farmington Hills, MI

03:45 PM - 05:00 PM

Walker River/Walker Lake Litigation: The Public Trust Doctrine in Nevada

Description:

Walker Lake in Nevada has decreased in size by more than 50 percent and volume by more than 70 percent principally due to appropriation and use in Nevada. A lawsuit by Nevada stakeholder’s dependent on Walker Lake asserts that the state’s public trust doctrine requires limitation of the rights of the appropriators. This case appears to reprise several key issues addressed in California’s well - known National Audubon (Mono Lake) case. In May 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for theNinth Circuit certified the following question to the Nevada Supreme Court: “Does the public trust doctrine apply to rights already adjudicated and settled under the doctrine of prior appropriation and, if so, to what extent?” This panel will explore the Walker River/Walker Lake litigation and the issues it poses for the public trust doctrine in Nevada and the extent to which the outcome is likely to influence doctrine in other prior appropriation states. Based on the examples provided and an in-depth discussion, attendees will be equipped to critically analyze instances of appropriation and the effect of the public doctrine.

Moderator:
Barbara Cosens, Professor of Law, University of Idaho College of Law, Moscow, ID

Speakers:
Gordon DePaoli, Woodburn & Wedge, Reno, NV
*Lisa Heki, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Gardnerville, NV
Simeon Herskovits, Advocates for Community & Environment, Taos, NM

05:00 PM - 07:00 PM

Reception

07:00 AM - 08:00 AM

Continental Breakfast

08:00 AM - 09:15 AM

Litigating, Negotiating, and Implementing Tribal Water Rights in the United States

Description:

The U.S. Supreme Court’s November 2017 cert denial in Coachella Valley Water District v. Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians will have significant implications for both tribes and non-Indian stakeholders in groundwater-dependent basins throughout the United States. Outlining some of these potential impacts, an August 2018 article in Science estimated that more than 200 Indian tribes in the West have unresolved claims to groundwater, some of which involve lands in areas with significant concerns about groundwater quality. In addition to discussing the consequences of this landmark case, this panel will provide an update on ongoing efforts to establish and quantify tribal water rights through litigation and settlement efforts. Attendees will gain insight and understanding into issues of significance to tribes, as well as the challenges faced when implementing and enforcing both tribal water rights settlements and adjudicated tribal water rights.

Moderator:
Jeanne Whiteing, Attorney, Whiteing Law, Boulder, CO

Speakers:
*M. Alexander Pearl, Director, Center for Water Law and Policy, Lubbock, TX
Stanley Pollack, Contract Attorney, Water Rights Unit, Navajo Nation Department of Justice, Window Rock, AZ
Vanessa Ray-Hodge, Sonosky, Chambers, Sachse, Mielke & Brownell, LLP, Albuquerque, NM

09:15 AM - 09:30 AM

Networking Break

09:30 AM - 10:45 AM

NPDES Permits for Discharges Carried by Groundwater: Is That a Thing?

Description:

The Clean Water Act (CWA) regulates “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) which by definition does not include groundwater. In 2018, two federal appeals courts held that discharges through groundwater hydrologically connected to WOTUS are subject to regulation under the CWA. The Ninth Circuit concluded that treated wastewater injected into wells and carried by groundwater to the Pacific Ocean after 84 days was “fairly traceable” to WOTUS. The Fourth Circuit found that a gasoline spill that continued to migrate from a repaired underground pipe break resulted in a “discharge” through soil and groundwater into adjacent wetlands and creeks. Both courts held that CWA groundwater jurisdiction is not limited to discharges of pollutants “directly” from point sources to WOTUS. These cases leave regulation ambiguous and pose substantial technical and regulatory challenges. This panel, from diverse perspectives, will discuss the current status of regulation and the challenges in implementing the case law while equipping attendees with practical knowledge to assist stakeholders.

Moderator:

Marcia Greenblatt, Principal, Integral Consulting, Inc., Louisville, CO

Speakers:

*John Fognani, Hayes and Boone, LLP, Denver, CO
Frank Holleman, Southern Environmental Law Center, Chapel Hill, NC

10:45 AM - 11:00 AM

Networking Break

11:00 AM - 12:30 PM

ETHICS: The Attorney-Client Privilege in the Twitter Era

Description:

A panel of attorneys knowledgeable of the many ambiguities present in social media will tackle the difficult ethical challenges faced daily by attorneys. Whether working in private practice, as in-house counsel, in academia, government, or non-profit organizations, today’s attorneys face an expanding and myriad number of ways in which they can knowingly, and unknowingly, violate the ethical rules, simply by using social media. Panelists will reinforce safe practices and procedures to ensure ethical rules are not sacrificed during social media use.

Speakers:
Kevin Kinnear, Porzak Browning & Bushong LLP, Boulder, CO
Sylvia Quast, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 9, San Francisco, CA
Heather Welles, O'Melveny & Myers LLP, Los Angeles, CA

01:00 PM - 04:00 PM

Public Service Project

Description:

This year’s public service project will be a joint effort between participants of the 37th Water Law Conference and the 48th Spring Conference. A boxed lunch will be provided for all participants from 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Transportation will be provided, departing the hotel promptly at 1:00 p.m. To volunteer for the public service project, sign up while registering.

06:30 PM - 08:00 PM

Reception

Description:

Join us to catch up with old friends, become acquainted with new ones. This unique networking opportunity will include attendees of the 48th Spring Conference attendees.

11:59 PM - 11:59 PM

Achieving Carbon Neutrality

20.00

Description:
Calculated with great care, the Section estimates that the average attendee’s participation will generate approximately one metric ton of carbon emissions. You can offset your carbon footprint by adding $20 to the registration fee. This will cover the cost of a one-ton carbon credit and help pay for tree plantings and public service projects! Contributions are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law.

11:59 PM - 11:59 PM

Conference Speaker Support

25.00

Description:
The Section strives to provide programming representing a unique depth of perspectives on all issues. We consistently work to include speakers on panels that represent tribal interests, NGO’s, and academics. To assist these speaker with the expense of attending conferences the Section offers a limitednumber of travel reimbursements. To assurethat the Section can continue to offer travel assistance to such speakers please considerdonating to our Program Support Fund. Donations are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law. Make your donation of $25 (or more) when you register.

Registration Information

Early Bird Deadline, Tuition Assistance and more!

Registration Form

Download the 37th Water Law Registration form

Brochure

Print out the 37th Water Law Conference Brochure

List of Registrants

View Conference Attendees

Car Rental- Hertz

Hertz is a proud to provide car rental savings to the American Bar Association.

Air Travel- Egencia

With ABA Egencia, you can automatically obtain ABA negotiated airfare discounts for travel to the ABA Meetings.

2019 Annual Section Sponsors

2019 Annual Legal Leader Sponsors

Silver Sponsors

Legal Leaders

Publications | Book

Environmental Litigation, Second Edition

By Janet S Kole

Publications | Book

Whose Drop Is It, Anyway? Legal Issues Surrounding Our Nation's Water Resources

By Megan Baroni

Publications | Book

Capturing the Power of Electric Restructuring

By Joey Lee Miranda

Audio and Video | On-Demand CLE

Leading the Way in Climate Mitigation and Adaptation through Innovation and Exercising Tribal Sovereignty (On-Demand CLE)

Audio and Video | On-Demand CLE

The Disaster Roadmap: Leveraging Funding and Best Practices (On-Demand CLE)

Audio and Video | On-Demand CLE

Delisting the Grizzly: Perspectives of the Greater Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Litigation from Administrative, Animal, and Federal Indian Law (On-Demand CLE)

The Gay/Trans Panic Defense: What It is, and How to End It

Energy, commitment, and connection: Doing the work of diversity and inclusion

Attorney Salary Negotiations: Are They to Blame for the Gender Pay Gap Among Lawyers?

Diversity Events at Annual

Looking Back on the 2020s: What a Decade

Taxpayer Advocate Service: Not Just for Low-Income Taxpayers

Statement of ABA President Bob Carlson, re: Detention of immigrant children in poor conditions

The Fund for Justice and Education

Resources

Government & Regulation

Practice Specialties

Public Interest

Career & Practice

Industry

37th Water Law Conference

Grand Hyatt Denver, 8 AM MDT

Select your state to learn more about the credit details and status of CLE application.