Pam is a seasoned environmental attorney who joined Mohan Groble Scolaro as Partner after nearly 20 years with BNSF Railway Company.

Pam’s experience includes environmental remediation claims and litigation with private parties, communities and government agencies, some involving complex sites with multiple contaminants and sources, off-site migration, indoor air, toxic tort, and insurance issues. While at BNSF Railway Company, Pam was lead in-house environmental counsel in the case of Burlington Northern, et al, v. United States, et al, ultimately decided by the United States Supreme Court, which held that joint and several liability for environmental cleanup costs need not attach where apportionment can be demonstrated at trial.

At Mohan Groble Scolaro, Pam’s practice covers compliance counseling, permitting, auditing and enforcement actions in environmental matters under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, and Superfund, as well as hazardous materials transportation and other environmental statutes.

In addition to her regulatory practice, Pam provides transactional counseling in property acquisition, disposition and financing, including permitting small and large scale development projects requiring Environmental Impact Statements or other assessments under National Environmental Policy Act. Pam has been named a Leading Lawyer in Illinois from 2019 through 2022, an honor earned by less than 5% of Illinois attorneys.

EDUCATION

University of Pittsburgh School of Law, J.D., cum laude, 1985
University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, B.A., 1981

BAR ADMISSIONS

Illinois

COURT MEMBERSHIPS

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Illinois Supreme Court
U.S. Supreme Court

PRESENTATIONS AND ARTICLES

When is a CWA Permit Required for Migration of Contaminated Groundwater? EPA and Courts Wrestle with the Issue. April 2018.
Federal Agencies Advance One Federal Decision Policy for Permitting Major Infrastructure Projects. April 2018
Brownfields Amendments in the BUILD Act. April 2018
Supreme Court Rules that Army Corps Jurisdictional Determinations Under Clean Water Act Can Be Appealed. May 2016.
Federal Preemption in Rail Development Projects, American Shortline and Regional Railroad Assocation General Counsel Symposium, October, 2015.
US EPA’s New Environmental Justice Screening Tool, American Railway Development Annual Meeting, July, 2015
Trends in Stormwater Compliance, American Shortline and Regional Railroad Assocation ‘Legal Tracks’, June 2015
Railroad Real Estate-Ownership, Use, Valuation and Management, American Shortline and Regional Railroad Association Annual Meeting, March 30, 2015
Muddying the Waters: What You Need to Know About the Proposed Rule on “Waters of the United States”, American Railway Development Association Newsletter, September 2014
How to Avoid Pitfalls When Hiring Veterans, Fleet Maintenance Magazine, February, 2014
Police the Lease: Environmental Liabilities of Landlords and Tenants, American Railway Development Association Annual Meeting, June, 2014
Public Participation in Rail Projects, American Railway Development Association Annual Meeting, June 11, 2012
Environmental 101, American Shortline and Regional Railroad Association Annual Meeting, April 23, 2012
The Latest in Remediation, American Shortline and Regional Railroad Association Eastern and Southern Region Conferences, October 3, 2011, and October 24, 2011
Environmental Issues in a Derailment, American Shortline and Regional Railroad Association Legal Tracks Newsletter, Fourth Quarter 2012
Navigating the Legal Trenches of Hiring Veterans, (with Maisha Shaw) Mass Transit Magazine, September 28, 2012

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel (Environmental Committee, Chair)
American Railway Development Association (Law Committee – Past Chair)
American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (Veterans Recruitment Committee and General Counsel Committee)
Chicago Bar Association
Illinois State Bar Association
American Bar Association