Biography
James Kezele practices in KMK’s Real Estate and Environmental Groups, leading our Environmental Group. James represents public and private companies and municipalities to ensure compliance with state and federal environmental laws and regulations.
James routinely counsels clients through transactions involving the purchase and sale of contaminated properties, and has significant experience evaluating environmental due diligence investigations including Phase I and Phase II Environmental Site Assessments, and other regulatory due diligence. James also counsels clients through voluntary remediation and Brownfield redevelopment.
James has significant experience counseling clients on the Clean Air Act and state air pollution laws as well as on the processes for applying for, negotiating the terms of, and complying with various environmental permits, including Title V permits, Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permits, and NPDES wastewater permits. James also advises his clients on environmental regulatory programs specific to their businesses, and work with his clients to implement operational and compliance strategies.
James also regularly works with clients to perform facility or programmatic environmental audits and he assists his clients in preparing for facility inspections and developing regulatory or agency-related responses.
Prior to joining KMK, James was an associate for a mid-sized law firm in Cincinnati, Ohio and was a member of the firm’s litigation group. There, James advised and represented clients with respect to environmental litigation, labor and employment law, transportation law, and general commercial litigation. Prior to law school James served as a Paralegal Specialist for the United States Department of Justice - Environment & Natural Resources Division where he gained valuable experience in environmental compliance and environmental litigation.
