Partner, Paul Hastings
Chris Carr is a partner in the San Francisco office of Paul Hastings LLP and chairs the firm’s Environment and Energy Practice Group. He is widely regarded as one of the leading infrastructure development, environmental, and energy lawyers in the United States. Drawing on his experience with the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of State, Mr. Carr represents businesses, landowners, public agencies, and nonprofits in all areas of environmental and natural resources law, including energy and infrastructure, water, forestry, agriculture, mining, and coastal and marine resources.
In particular, his practice focuses on permitting and litigation under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), the Clean Water Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and their California counterparts: the California ESA, the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). He has deep expertise and broad experience in local, state, federal, and international laws, regulations, initiatives, and programs addressing climate change and driving the energy transition.
Mr. Carr frequently defends permits, approvals, and environmental review documents for energy and other infrastructure projects in federal and state courts, and defends against “citizen suits” brought under federal and state environmental statutes for all manner of land and resources development.
Mr. Carr was Chair of Morrison and Foerster’s Global Energy & Environment Practice and Co-chair of its Cleantech Practice Group from 2010 – 2017. He is a regular speaker at Berkeley Law and Stanford Law School. Mr. Carr received his J.D. and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.
He has published widely in the area of environmental regulation, and is frequently interviewed by the broadcast and print media for his views, including:
United States Attorney, Eastern District of California
Mr. Grant was appointed by Attorney General Pam Bondi to serve as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California beginning on August 11, 2025. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 546(d), he was further appointed by the district court effective December 9, 2025.
Mr. Grant is a veteran of the Department of Justice, having served twice in Washington, D.C.: from 1991 to 1993 as an Attorney-Adviser in the Office of Legal Counsel, and from 2017 to 2021 as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). During his tenure at ENRD, he supervised more than a hundred Department litigators advancing the interests of the United States and its agencies in both enforcement and defensive matters, both civil and criminal.
In addition to his service in the Department, Mr. Grant has decades of experience in private practice in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento. That experience includes arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court, the California Supreme Court, and numerous other federal and state courts.
Mr. Grant served as a law clerk to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger (retired) and Associate Justice Clarence Thomas during the Supreme Court’s October 1994 Term. Earlier he served as a law clerk to Judge Edith H. Jones of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Houston, Texas.
Mr. Grant grew up in Modesto, California and raised his family in Sacramento County. He attended the University of California, Berkeley, from which he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics (1986) and a law degree (1990).
Partner, Holland & Knight
Jennifer Hernandez has practiced land use and environmental law for more than 30 years, and leads Holland & Knight's West Coast Land Use and Environmental Group. Ms. Hernandez divides her time between the firm's San Francisco and Los Angeles offices.
Ms. Hernandez is the only California lawyer ranked by her clients and peers in Chambers USA in the top tier of both land use/zoning and environmental lawyers. In addition, she was recognized as the top environmental litigator of the year in the San Francisco Bay Area by Best Lawyers, and received a California Lawyer of the Year award from the State Bar of California for her work on California's largest and most innovative land use and conservation agreement between her private landowner client and five major environmental organizations, including the Sierra Club and Natural Resources Defense Council. She also has received numerous civil rights awards for her work on overcoming environmentalist opposition to housing and other projects needed and supported by minority communities.
During his tenure as mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown named October 9, 2002, as "Jennifer Hernandez Day" in San Francisco in honor of her work as a "warrior on the Brownfields" to restore and redevelop former industrial lands. Ms. Hernandez is the longest-serving minority board member (23 years) of the California League of Conservation voters, was appointed by President Clinton to serve as a trustee for the Presidio National Park in San Francisco, and serves on the board of directors for California Forward and Sustainable Conservation.
Ms. Hernandez works for private sector, public agency and nonprofit clients on a broad range of projects in Bay Area, Southern California and Central Valley communities, including infill and master-planned mixed-use housing and commercial projects, university and research facilities, transportation and infrastructure projects, renewable and other energy projects, and local agency plan and ordinance updates. She has written three books, and more than 50 articles, on environmental and land use topics, and regularly teaches land use, environmental and climate law in law and business schools, colleges and seminars. She also serves on the firm's Directors Committee and received the firm's highest honor – the Chesterfield Smith Award – for her community service.
Ms. Hernandez graduated with honors from Harvard University and Stanford Law School, and clerked for Region 20 of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) before beginning her land use and environmental law career. Ms. Hernandez is the daughter and granddaughter of steelworkers and was raised in Pittsburg, California. She and her husband live in Berkeley and Los Angeles.
Founder & President, Arizona Strategies
Karrin Taylor Robson is a respected and long-time Arizona business leader and land-use expert. She is Founder and President of Arizona Strategies, a premier land use strategy firm headquartered in Phoenix. Throughout her extensive career, she has entitled more than 35,000 acres including more than 45,000 homes and over 25 million square feet of commercial uses.
Karrin has worked with national organizations representing major landowners and stakeholders across the country to advance balanced federal environmental law and policy on endangered species acts and wetlands issues. In addition, she has advanced multiple public-private partnerships, leveraging private sector capital to deliver public infrastructure and other public benefits.
Karrin has also served on the boards of numerous government, community and economic development organizations. In June 2017, she was appointed by Governor Doug Ducey to the Arizona Board of Regents which is responsible for the governance of the state’s public universities, Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona. She served as the Chair of the Joe Foss Institute, Vice Chair of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, trustee of Boys and Girls Club of Metro Phoenix Foundation, and a board member of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and invisionAZ. Karrin currently serves as a member of the Civic Leaders Group for the Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, a member of the Arizona-Mexico Commission and a member of the board of American Council of Trustees and Alumni.
Prior to forming Arizona Strategies, Karrin served as Executive Vice President of DMB Associates, Inc., a Scottsdale based master-planned community developer where she was responsible for ongoing land use entitlement matters and other value-enhancing efforts for its communities and businesses.
Earlier in her career, Karrin was a principal with the law firm of Biskind, Hunt & Taylor, P.L.C., where she practiced in the areas of land use, development and zoning law representing large landowners on significant and complex land use cases.
Her deep Arizona history and professional experience have shaped her perspective on our culture today and helped define her personal priorities. She believes that being actively involved in the community is a prerequisite for being an American.
Through her numerous professional, community and philanthropic commitments, Karrin advocates daily for building and sustaining a dynamic and diverse economy, protecting property rights and creating value in real estate, developing a world-class education system with options for all types of learners, fostering civic engagement and supporting the men and women who serve in our military.
Karrin is the mother of four, a grandmother, and the wife of Ed Robson. In the most recent chapter of her career, Karrin was a candidate for Governor of Arizona.
Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Lawrence VanDyke serves as a circuit judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Prior to that appointment in January 2020, he served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the United States Department of Justice. Before that, he served consecutively as the Solicitor General of two western states – Nevada and Montana. At the beginning of his legal career, he worked as an attorney in the Appellate and Constitutional Issues practice group at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP.
Judge VanDyke received his law degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor on the Harvard Law Review. He has engineering and theology undergraduate degrees and a masters degree in engineering management. He served as a law clerk to the Honorable Janice Rogers Brown of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Judge VanDyke and his wife Cheryl live in Reno, Nevada, and they have three children.
Chief Deputy Attorney General
Ryan Newman is currently Chief Deputy Attorney General for Florida Office of the Attorney General.
During the first Trump Administration, he served as Counselor to the United States Attorney General for national security and international affairs, Deputy General Counsel (Legal Counsel) for the Department of Defense, and Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy at the Department of Justice. Prior to serving in the Executive Branch, Ryan was Chief Counsel to United States Senator Ted Cruz during the 114th Congress.
Ryan served as a law clerk to the Honorable Samuel A. Alito, Jr. on the United States Supreme Court, the Honorable Richard J. Leon on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, and the Honorable J.L. Edmondson on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Prior to law school, Ryan was an armor officer in the United States Army assigned to the 1st Squadron, 10th U.S. Cavalry Regiment (Buffalo Soldiers). He deployed to Iraq in 2003 for Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Ryan graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1998. He earned his law degree with high honors from The University of Texas School of Law in 2007.
Chief Deputy Attorney General
Ryan Newman is currently Chief Deputy Attorney General for Florida Office of the Attorney General.
During the first Trump Administration, he served as Counselor to the United States Attorney General for national security and international affairs, Deputy General Counsel (Legal Counsel) for the Department of Defense, and Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy at the Department of Justice. Prior to serving in the Executive Branch, Ryan was Chief Counsel to United States Senator Ted Cruz during the 114th Congress.
Ryan served as a law clerk to the Honorable Samuel A. Alito, Jr. on the United States Supreme Court, the Honorable Richard J. Leon on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, and the Honorable J.L. Edmondson on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Prior to law school, Ryan was an armor officer in the United States Army assigned to the 1st Squadron, 10th U.S. Cavalry Regiment (Buffalo Soldiers). He deployed to Iraq in 2003 for Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Ryan graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1998. He earned his law degree with high honors from The University of Texas School of Law in 2007.
Acting Assistant Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, Office of Professional Responsibility, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Brian M. Fish is currently the Senior Advisor to the General Counsel at the Department of Homeland Security where he works on immigration and law enforcement issues. Previously, he was a trial attorney with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, where he represented the Department of Homeland Security in removal hearings before the U.S. Immigration Court. Additionally, he was a Special Assistant United States Attorney and a Baltimore City homicide prosecutor. He is a member of the Federalist Society's Criminal Law & Procedure Practice Group Executive Committee and the President of its Baltimore Lawyers Chapter. He earned his B.A. from LaSalle University in 1992 and his J.D. from Loyola University New Orleans School of Law in 1998.
Acting Assistant Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, Office of Professional Responsibility, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Brian M. Fish is currently the Senior Advisor to the General Counsel at the Department of Homeland Security where he works on immigration and law enforcement issues. Previously, he was a trial attorney with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, where he represented the Department of Homeland Security in removal hearings before the U.S. Immigration Court. Additionally, he was a Special Assistant United States Attorney and a Baltimore City homicide prosecutor. He is a member of the Federalist Society's Criminal Law & Procedure Practice Group Executive Committee and the President of its Baltimore Lawyers Chapter. He earned his B.A. from LaSalle University in 1992 and his J.D. from Loyola University New Orleans School of Law in 1998.
Of Counsel, Spencer Fane LLP
Anthony J. “A.J.” Ferate has built a multi-faceted background in the areas of the law, policy, energy, campaigns and elections, and defense over the last 20 years.
Through recent representation as Vice President of Regulatory Affairs for the Oklahoma Independent Petroleum Association (“OIPA”), A.J. held responsibilities over government efforts outside of the legislative branch on matters as broad as water, electric generation, commodity marketing, land matters, and seismicity. A.J. also maintained responsibility for legal matters at OIPA, including amicus briefing in appellate matters. A.J.’s extensive experience also includes management of public policy strategy for a Fortune 500 company.
For the past eleven years, A.J. has volunteered as General Counsel and spokesman for the Oklahoma Republican Party and has represented a number of elected officials, including U.S. Senator James Lankford, former statewide elected officials, a number of state legislators, and members of Congress.
Additionally, A.J. has assisted elected officials serve their constituents in all branches of government. Early in his career, A.J. held legislative aide duties in the Nebraska Legislature, then went on to work for former Nebraska Treasurer David Heineman. A.J. gained experience in the judiciary while serving Judge Gary L. Lumpkin at the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals, the highest criminal appellate court in Oklahoma. Following this service, A.J. began work with Denise A. Bode of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, assisting her in her duties regulating 70 percent of Oklahoma’s economy, including oil and gas and electric utilities.
A.J. honorably served ten years as an intelligence analyst for the United States Naval Reserve, including time at the Office of Naval Intelligence in the greater Washington DC area.
Opinion pieces authored or ghostwritten by A.J. have been published in the Seattle Times, Politico, Law360, The Oklahoman, Tulsa World and The Journal Record. A.J. has also been interviewed by national and international newspapers, and has also appeared on national radio programs including NPR’s The Diane Rehm Show and On Point with Tom Ashbrook.
Vice President & Senior Counsel, Becket
Luke Goodrich is the author of Free to Believe: The Battle over Religious Liberty in America and vice president and senior counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.
While at Becket, Luke has argued and won precedent-setting cases in the Third, Fifth, Seventh, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits, and has helped Becket win four major Supreme Court cases in the last seven years: including victories for the Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby against the contraception mandate, a victory for a Muslim prisoner under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, and a unanimous victory in the Supreme Court’s first decision ever on the ministerial exception, which The Wall Street Journal called one of “the most important religious liberty cases in a half century.”
He frequently discusses religious freedom on networks such as CNN, Fox News, ABC, and NPR, and in publications like the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and New York Times magazine. He also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law, where he teaches constitutional law.
Before joining Becket, he clerked for Judge Michael W. McConnell on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit and graduated from the University of Chicago Law School with high honors as a member of the Law Review and the Order of the Coif.
Trial Attorney, Civil Rights Division, United States Department of Justice (incoming)
Adam Griffin is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Law. During law school, he served as a research assistant to Professor Stephen E. Sachs and UNC Law Dean Martin Brinkley. After law school, he spent two years litigating for liberty at the Institute for Justice as an inaugural Law and Liberty Fellow. He served as a law clerk to Chief Judge Richard E. Myers in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, and is now a separation-of-powers attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation.
Panel 1: The Not So Wild West? How Regulations Have Affected Land Use in the Western States
Chris Carr, Eric Grant, Jennifer L. Hernandez, Karrin Taylor Robson, Lawrence VanDyke
2023 Western Chapters Conference
The rising cost of housing and the regulatory state are some of the major issues...
Introductory Remarks
2023 Annual Western Chapters Conference
Featuring: Hon. Raúl Labrador, Attorney General, Idaho
Introductory Remarks
2023 Annual Western Chapters Conference
Featuring: Hon. Raúl Labrador, Attorney General, Idaho
Litigation Update: The Stop WOKE Act Cases
Ryan Dean Newman
In 2022, the Florida Legislature passed a bill titled the Individual Freedom Act. The bill...
Litigation Update: The Stop WOKE Act Cases
Ryan Dean Newman
In 2022, the Florida Legislature passed a bill titled the Individual Freedom Act. The bill...
Topics
A Few Questions About Crypto Asset Regulation for SEC Chair Gensler
This post is an expanded version of comments delivered by the author during a webinar...
Courthouse Steps Oral Argument: United States v. Hansen
Brian M. Fish
On Monday, March 27, 2023 the Supreme Court is set to hear oral argument in...
Courthouse Steps Oral Argument: United States v. Hansen
Brian M. Fish
On Monday, March 27, 2023 the Supreme Court is set to hear oral argument in...
Topics
What Happened in the Student Loan Forgiveness Oral Arguments?
On March 1, 2023, Mark Chenoweth, the President and General Counsel of the New Civil...
Litigation Update: Apache Stronghold v. United States Goes En Banc at the Ninth Circuit
Anthony J. Ferate, Luke Goodrich, Adam F. Griffin
This case presents an intersection between Native Americans’ free exercise rights and the Government’s power...