Seasoned Environmental Partner Deborah Tellier Returns to Farella Braun + Martel

Firm Also Adds Scott Andrews, Amanda Hairston and Akshay Verma

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 20, 2008 - Farella Braun + Martel welcomes back environmental law Partner Deborah K. Tellier. She returns to the firm after six years at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, where she served as associate general counsel and chief compliance officer. In addition, the firm adds associates Scott Andrews to the Business Litigation Group, Amanda Hairston to the Insurance Coverage Group and Akshay Verma to the Environmental Law Department.

"We are delighted to welcome Deborah back to the Farella family," said firm chairman Steve Lowenthal.  "Her talent and experience in compliance counseling and regulatory representation adds further depth to our nationally recognized environmental law practice. Scott, Amanda and Akshay also bring solid experience in practices where we have seen steady demand."

Tellier returns to practice with valuable experience gained while heading up the legal department and overseeing the grants administration department for the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing environmental conservation and scientific research around the world, as well as helping to improve the quality of life in the San Francisco Bay Area.  At the Foundation, Tellier provided legal support and solutions for grantmaking activities averaging $250 million annually. She was also responsible for developing and implementing the Foundation's governance, grantmaking and compliance programs. 

Tellier has more than 20 years of environmental law experience. She counsels clients on compliance with hazardous waste and materials, water and air pollution control, and underground storage tank laws. She represents companies in administrative proceedings and negotiations regarding soil and groundwater cleanups, securing operational permits and permit variances and enforcement actions involving environmental issues. Tellier also counsels clients on establishing and monitoring environmental management systems, audits and sustainability programs, as well as conducting and evaluating environmental due diligence investigations in connection with acquiring, leasing and financing real property.

Tellier has also been named to the Executive Committee of the Environmental Law Section of the Bar Association of San Francisco, a position she held earlier in her career. She has taught and lectured on environmental law and regulatory topics at institutions of higher learning and industry conferences in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Remaining active in the nonprofit sector, Tellier currently serves as a board member and counsel to the Maya Center for Rural Education and Well-Being Association, a U.S. public charity supporting educational programs in rural Guatemala. 

Tellier received her J.D. from the University of Oregon (1987) and her B.S. in Environmental Policy Analysis and Planning from the University of California, Davis (1982).

Andrews and Hairston were previously litigation associates at Heller Ehrman LLP in San Francisco.  Andrews's complex litigation experience includes representing electronics companies in patent-infringement, antitrust, and trade-secret controversies.  He also has handled contract, consumer-fraud, and tax cases in federal and state courts and before administrative agencies.  He earned his J.D. from University of California, Berkeley School of Law (2005) and his B.A. in English from Columbia College (1992).

Hairston represents corporate policy holders in insurance coverage matters, including commercial general liability and umbrella policies, directors and officers liability policies and first-party property and business interruption policies.  Hairston earned her J.D. from Hastings College of the Law (2007) and her B.A. in political science from Stanford University (2003).

Verma was previously an environmental associate at Pillsbury Winthrop LLP in San Francisco.  His experience includes counseling and representation of clients concerning California's Global Warming Solutions Act, CERCLA, the Clean Water Act, NEPA and CEQA, and the Clean Air Act. He earned his J.D. from Santa Clara University, School of Law (2006) and his B.S. in chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley (1999).

Farella Braun + Martel represents clients throughout the United States and abroad in sophisticated business transactions and high-stakes commercial, civil and criminal litigation.  Founded in 1962, the firm is headquartered in San Francisco and maintains an office in the Napa Valley focused on the wine industry. Farella Braun + Martel lawyers are known for their imaginative legal solutions, dynamism and intellectual creativity. With an unwavering service ethic and interdisciplinary team approach, the firm is committed to advancing clients' objectives in the most effective, coordinated and efficient manner. Farella Braun + Martel is a Green Business. http://www.fbm.com/

Press Contacts:

Melinda Hepp / Traci Stuart
Blattel Communications      
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Cheryl Loof   
Farella Braun + Martel
415.954.4433
cloof@fbm.com