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When it comes to practicing law, I cannot imagine myself working in any other profession. For me, helping people protect the environment they care about and their quality of life is what makes this work so rewarding.
Whether it is a case about thousands of acres of public land or a neighborhood project, I focus on integrating scientific information and legal principles to build the strongest case possible. My experience in these areas stems from my scientific background and nearly a decade as a trial attorney for Environment and Natural Resources Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. There, I handled high-profile environmental law cases around the country for federal agencies, such as the Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Department of Transportation, and Federal Emergency Management Agency. I also negotiated multi-party settlements in cases involving millions of acres of public lands to highway projects that raised environmental justices issues. I was awarded several Department awards, including the John Marshall Award, the Department of Justice's highest award for attorneys.
Prior to becoming a lawyer, I earned a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from The Johns Hopkins University, School of Public Health, and worked as a researcher in the Department of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley. Without question, my scientific background brings a unique perspective to my cases,. Whether it is a proposed mine that will impact places that you recreate or a project in your neighborhood that will impact your local environment and quality of life, I can work directly and easily with experts, review scientific literature and data, and integrate that information into a legal strategy that increases the potential of a winning case at either the administrative or litigation level. When you hire me, you can rest assured that you have found a lawyer that truly cares about your case.
Select Publications and Presentations
Environmental Plaintiffs and Access to Judicial Review, The
Advocate, Idaho State Bar, March/April 2021.
NEPA at 50 Years: An Update and Look Towards the Future, Idaho
State Bar Environmental and Natural Resources Law Conference
(panelist), April 2020.
Effective Participation in the Federal Environmental Review
Process, Idaho Rivers United and Save the South Fork Salmon,
March 2020.
Is the National Environmental Policy Act in Need of Change?, The
Advocate, Idaho State Bar, January 2019.
Education:
J.D., University of California, Berkeley School of Law
Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins University, School of Public Health
(Biochemistry and Molecular Biology)
B.S., University of the Pacific (Biochemistry)
Julia is licensed to practice law in the state and federal courts in Idaho (ISB 10251).