Jenner & Block is pleased to announce that Amanda Shafer Berman has joined the firm as a partner in its Washington, DC office. She will join the firm’s Energy Practice, which has experienced great success and substantial growth in recent years. Amanda brings an insider’s understanding of how federal agencies build and defend regulatory programs, a distinguished appellate record in landmark energy, climate, and environmental cases, and nearly a decade of government experience.
A leading authority on environmental and energy litigation, Amanda is widely recognized for her work challenging and defending major agency actions and infrastructure projects. She advises and litigates on behalf of energy developers, utilities in electric, gas, and water, chemical and agricultural product producers, motor vehicle and aircraft manufacturers, telecom and commercial space companies, and trade associations, helping her clients assess and influence agency rules and permit decisions—and challenge or defend those actions in court when needed.
"We are thrilled to welcome Amanda to Jenner & Block, adding her deep regulatory insight, litigation acumen, and appellate depth to our well-established strengths in energy, environmental, and administrative law," said Co-Managing Partners Ishan Bhabha and Randy Mehrberg. "Amanda's ability to guide clients facing agency action, including important federal climate, energy, and environmental rules and permit decisions for large-scale projects, and then successfully challenge or defend those actions in court, makes her an invaluable resource to our clients and further enhances Jenner's robust litigation and regulatory counsel offerings in the energy and infrastructure sector."
Amanda joins Jenner after six years at an AmLaw 100 firm, where she co-led the Appellate Practice and built a robust energy, environmental, and climate regulatory docket. Before that, she spent nearly a decade as a senior attorney in the US Department of Justice's Environment and Natural Resources Division defending significant federal agency actions, including the first-ever greenhouse gas regulations for industrial sources and the landmark Clean Power Plan, argued before the en banc DC Circuit. Amanda has argued over 30 cases before the federal courts of appeals, in addition to many district and state court cases.
"Amanda pairs a regulator's judgment with a litigator's instincts, understanding how a permitting dispute, an agency rulemaking challenge, or an environmental or APA claim against a major project will unfold in the courts well before it ever reaches them," said Partners Laurie Edelstein and Suedeen Kelly, Co-Chairs of the Energy Practice. "As the pace and scale of energy infrastructure development accelerates and the volume of lawsuits challenging related agency actions increases, that combination is precisely what clients need to ensure they can meet their goals and complete critical projects."
Amanda has been recognized in Chambers USA for five consecutive years for her environmental and regulatory work and is a five-time recipient of the Department of Justice’s Assistant Attorney General's Award for Excellence. She has also served on the DC Circuit's Advisory Committee on Procedures.
"Jenner's multidisciplinary energy and environmental bench allows the firm to guide clients successfully through the regulatory process and, when necessary, challenge or defend key rules and major infrastructure projects in litigation," said Amanda. "With enormous investment underway in energy and infrastructure and many long-awaited air, climate, and other regulatory rules expected to be issued soon, I'm looking forward to working alongside the Jenner team to support clients as they grow and defend key projects and products."
Amanda holds a JD from Georgetown University Law Center and a BA from Johns Hopkins University.
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