EMAIL:
PHONE: 404-333-0748
Office Address:
1200 Peachtree Street, N.E
Suite 600
Atlanta, GA 30309
Emory University
(J.D., 2003)
Wake Forest University
(B.A., 1997)
Georgia
Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Environmental Litigation (2019–Present)
Past Chair, Environmental and Toxic Tort Section of the Atlanta Bar Association
Order of the Coif, member
Shelly Jacobs Ellerhorst practices environmental law with an emphasis in complex water and hazardous waste related regulatory, enforcement, and litigation issues. Shelly is counsel to the State of Georgia in what is commonly referred to as the “Water Wars,” including litigation, interstate negotiations, and regulatory matters related to the disputes among Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Her preeminence in the environmental litigation field is recognized by The Best Lawyers in America® for Environmental Litigation (2019–Present).
Shelly routinely handles complex regulatory matters arising under the Clean Water Act, RCRA, NEPA, and state law counterparts. In addition, Shelly defends clients in federal courts against environmental citizen suits and CERCLA cost recovery and contribution actions. She has substantial experience in procuring, amending, and defending water permits, including NPDES, stormwater, and wetlands permits. She also counsels clients on compliance issues and business strategy, including permit compliance, drafting environmental, health and safety document retention policies, and making disclosures under EPA’s Audit Policy.
Shelly is an active community volunteer. She is a past chair of the Environmental and Toxic Tort Section of the Atlanta Bar Association. She is a volunteer with the Georgia Justice Project and was a former reading mentor for, and on the executive board of, Everybody Wins! Atlanta, a literacy and mentoring nonprofit proven to build reading skills and a love of reading in low-income elementary students. She has also represented clients in Juvenile Court through the Truancy Intervention Program. Shelly received her J.D., with honors, in 2003 from Emory University School of Law, where she was a member of the Order of the Coif and served a Managing Editor for the Emory International Law Review.
Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Environmental Litigation
(2019–Present)
Past Chair of the Environmental and Toxic Tort Section of the Atlanta Bar Association
Order of the Coif, member
Counsel to the State of Georgia in what is commonly referred to as the “Water Wars,” including litigation, interstate negotiations, and regulatory matters related to the disputes among Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers concerning operation of federal reservoirs in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint and Alabama-Coosa-Tallapoosa River Basins.
Counsel to Fortune 100 consumer products company advising on all aspects of water permitting, including NPDES, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers § 404 and Nationwide, and Indirect Discharge permits.
Outside environmental counsel to global leader of heavy construction equipment manufacturer, including successfully defending the company against government enforcement action and assisting in company-wide regulatory compliance.
Represented a solid-waste handling facility facing an immediate shut-down order and negotiated a compliance path forward, saving the client’s business and preventing the layoff of all employees.
Outside environmental counsel to one of the largest plastic container companies in the U.S., including defending the company in CERLCA litigation, representing the company in acquisitions, and assisting in company-wide regulatory compliance.
Represented a mining company in defending a claim in the Montana Water Rights court.
Successfully represented an international corporation in an internal investigation and multi-agency enforcement action in connection with the discovery of a vendor’s illicit misappropriation and mishandling of significant quantities of hazardous waste, described by the company as the single most important legal issue it has faced.