On April 13, Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller Shareholder Peter V. Keays spoke on negotiation in environmental matters for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s 2022 Environmental Law Forum. In the presentation, entitled “Dr. Compromise or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Negotiation,” Pete and co-presenter David Rockman of Eckert Seamans explored the many ways negotiation is involved in environmental matters, including litigation settlements, consent agreements, penalty and enforcement negotiations, permit negotiations, and real estate transactions. The panel also covered the various interests and considerations that animate different types of clients and counterparties in environmental negotiations, and provided specific tools to help participants to negotiate effectively.
A shareholder in the firm’s Environmental Law Practice, Pete represents corporate, municipal, and nonprofit clients in a wide range of regulatory, transactional, and litigation matters arising under federal and state environmental laws. He also counsels clients on various issues regarding permitting, regulatory compliance, and the environmental aspects of real estate transactions. Pete has successfully tried cases before the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board and currently represents clients in cases pending in various state and federal courts. He also maintains a particular focus on the Clean Water Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (Superfund), and related state laws.
Pete earned his law degree, summa cum laude, from Vermont Law School, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Vermont Law Review. Prior to joining the firm, Pete served as a law clerk to the Honorable Peter W. Hall of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and the Honorable Dana L. Christensen, Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana.
