C. Max Zygmont

Max is an adjunct professor of environmental law at Emory University School of Law, a 2017 graduate of the Institute for Georgia Environmental Leadership, and a past Chair of the Environmental Law Section of the Georgia Bar Association. He currently serves on the Chattahoochee Nature Center Board of Trustees. Max earned his J.D. from University of North Carolina School of Law and his B.A. from University of Georgia.

Acritas Star (2019)

Chambers USA, America’s Leading Lawyers for Business (2007–Present)

Superlawyers

Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Environmental Law and Litigation (2021–Present)

Routine speaker at CHWMEG, Inc. semiannual meetings (2015–2018)

Routine speaker at Georgia Environmental Conference (2009–2018)

Frequent guest lecturer at Emory Law School (2015–2018)

National environmental counsel for multi-facility pesticide manufacturer. Matters include facility air compliance assessments and permitting counseling, successful Clean Water Act citizen suit defense, multi-media compliance counseling, counseling in connection with wide-ranging grand jury subpoena relating to pesticide matters, local and EPA-driven risk management and process safety management program requirements, Federal Railroad Administration enforcement, OSHA enforcement defense and recording/reporting counseling, and pesticide manufacturing and distribution requirements.

General environmental counsel for midwestern IGCC development project. Project would involve power generation from syn-gas paired with capture and storage of carbon dioxide stream. Support land and facility acquisition transaction, air permitting, RCRA issue management, equity financing, and subsurface storage rights strategy.

National environmental counsel for the world’s largest rolled aluminum company. Matters involve enforcement defense and compliance counseling on air and wastewater issues in multiple jurisdictions. In addition, we have obtained favorable settlements at federal and state-level Superfund sites in a number of jurisdictions.

Defeated Clean Air Act Title V permit challenges brought by environmental group against southeast merchant coke company. Challenges included an administrative challenge before the permitting authority and a Title V Petition for Objection to EPA. Challenges were premised on alleged HAP and criteria pollutant impacts on nearby communities.

Represented state’s largest rendering company regarding Georgia EPD’s planned revisions to certain wastewater permitting processes and, in conjunction with other industry groups, executed comment and advocacy strategy to successfully reset and redirect the process. Also counseled company on multi-media permitting, compliance, and threatened tort matters at multiple facilities.

D.C. Circuit litigation: Petitioned for review and, with co-petitioners, obtained stay of the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule under the Clean Air Act. Challenged Clean Air Act rulemaking, including EPA’s Start-up, Shutdown, Malfunction SIP Calls and briefing following the Supreme Court’s remand of the Tailoring Rule litigation. Petitioned for review, and obtained rare vacatur, of an NPL listing in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of an auto-parts company.

Developed and executed Lone Pine strategy on behalf of a leading aggregates company, and in coordination with major utility co-party, to obtain dismissals prior to any meaningful discovery in mass personal injury and property damage toxic tort litigation.

For a major zinc galvanizing company, defending as intervenors an environmental group’s administrative challenge to the issuance of NPDES permits for two of the company’s facilities. Also, counsel company on Georgia industrial stormwater compliance requirements, RCRA requirements, and completion of the Georgia Voluntary Remediation Program at one of their facilities.

Environmental counsel to Great Lakes-region merchant coking company, involving Clean Air Act permitting, enforcement defense, and litigation with state agency and EPA, permitting and enforcement defense related to process water discharges, and counseling concerning RCRA compliance
strategies for coking co-products.

In Georgia EPD wastewater and solid waste enforcement action revoking our client’s NPDES and solid waste permits, defeated overwhelming majority of alleged violations in week-long hearing before the Office of State Administrative Hearings. Following hearing, reached settlement arrangement under which our client remained operative.

Environmental counsel to one of Georgia’s most significant private landowners, including defense of landowner in Clean Water Act 404 and stream buffer enforcement and counseling and project management in connection with permitting of further work.

For a Georgia auto-parts manufacturer, obtained favorable settlement and Title V permit revision in response to Georgia EPD enforcement concerning HAP emissions and equipment outages.

Represent southeast merchant coking company facing parallel enforcement proceedings brought by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the federal “Superfund” statute and under the federal hazardous waste statute and threatened toxic tort suits.