Recognized in Best Lawyers since 1995 
As a leader of the firm’s environmental practice, David focuses his representation of clients on the impact of environmental laws on transactions and real property in New Jersey and around the nation. A nationally renowned environmental lawyer, he has remained on the cutting edge of developments in the environmental sector since the 1980s. He has extensive experience related to the cleanup and redevelopment of contaminated properties including brownfields, environmental compliance and insurance issues, institutional and engineering controls, assessing and negotiating liability under federal and state Superfund laws, resolution of environmental issues in bankruptcy proceedings, litigation and dispute resolution arising from those issues, and sustainable building initiatives.
David advises clients on environmental contractual protection techniques, due diligence, transaction-triggered environmental laws, funding options for brownfields redevelopment, state and federal cleanup liabilities, deed notices and use restrictions, and environmental disclosures. He has substantial experience as special environmental counsel in bankruptcy proceedings, dealing with state and federal environmental authorities in the process of estimating and resolving environmental liabilities of bankrupt entities.
David has served as a court-appointed Special Master in environmental lawsuits in New Jersey. He regularly mediates environmental disputes and is a qualified mediator under New Jersey court rules, with a specialized focus on matters involving environmental laws and issues, including insurance-related claims. He has been selected by the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey to serve on the District’s Panel of Mediators and has continued to be appointed to successive terms on the panel.
David is a past President of the American College of Environmental Lawyers (ACOEL) and was the first New Jersey attorney appointed to fellowship in the College. He currently co-chairs the International Pro Bono Committee with a focus on leading and continuing ACOEL’s efforts in developing pro bono projects in Cuba. Among his speeches in international settings have been presentations at Oxford University's Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, and at the XI International Convention on Environment and Development in Havana, Cuba. Since 2015, he has led and participated in several multi-day symposia in Havana with Cuban counterparts and ACOEL colleagues on reinvigorating and expanding U.S./Cuba environmental cooperation, as has also participated in related webinars. He is also a regular contributor to ACOEL’s blog on environmental law topics
Prior to joining the firm, David chaired the environmental practice at Farer Fersko, where he established that firm's environmental practice in 1984. For over forty years, he has written and lectured extensively on environmental issues in New Jersey, nationally, and internationally. He developed and chaired longstanding national courses of study and related publications on environmental law topics for the American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education, and longstanding programs and associated manuals on the Industrial Site Recovery Act (IRSA), brownfield and other New Jersey laws, and environmental insurance for the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.
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