Hunton & Williams LLP Receives Top Ranking and 2013 'Law Firm of the Year: Water Law Practice' from U.S. News – Best Lawyers

WASHINGTON — February 4, 2013 — Hunton & Williams LLP received a Tier 1 national ranking as a "Best Law Firm: Environmental Law" and also was named "Law Firm of the Year: Water Law Practice" in the 2013 edition of U.S. News – Best Lawyers^®. These designations follow the practice's recent designation as a Law360 Environmental Group of the Year.

Brooks M. Smith, environmental practice team co-chair says: "The firm is gratified to be recognized for our environmental work, particularly for our contributions related to water law, which comprises an important part of our environmental practice. We have held lead roles in this arena in several precedent setting matters, including pioneering work in developing a cap-and-trade program for nutrients entering the Ohio River and a successful challenge against the EPA's first-ever attempt to revoke a CWA Section 404 permit."

Ranked #1 nationally for environmental law in 2012 by Chambers USA and named a Law360 Environmental Practice Group of the Year for the past three years, Hunton & Williams has long been at the center of the most significant environmental policy debates, regulatory developments, transactions and litigation. The group represents clients in matters involving virtually every major federal statute and numerous state laws. It has led precedent-setting legal challenges from the District of Columbia to California, in state and federal courts and at the appellate level, including several U.S. Supreme Court cases. The group coordinates routinely with the firm's transactional lawyers to assist clients on domestic and cross-border transactions.

Hunton & Williams has a comprehensive, nationwide practice involving the Clean Water Act, with significant experience in NPDES wastewater and stormwater permitting under Section 402, the water quality continuum under Section 303, Section 404 permits for discharges of fill into wetlands, streams, and other waters, water supply concerns and water rights negotiations, and National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act issues that often arise in connection with Clean Water Act permits and litigation.

About Hunton & Williams LLP

Hunton & Williams LLP provides legal services to corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals, as well as to a broad array of other entities. Since our establishment more than a century ago, Hunton & Williams has grown to more than 800 lawyers serving clients in 100 countries from 19 offices around the world. While our practice has a strong industry focus on energy, financial services and life sciences, our experience extends to more than 100 separate practice areas, including bankruptcy and creditors' rights, commercial litigation, corporate transactions and securities law, intellectual property, international and government relations, regulatory law, products liability, and privacy and data security.