Shandy, who was one of eight contenders for the position, will be sworn into office during the Board’s next regular meeting on July 19 and will serve until the Board’s annual election on Feb. 8, 2011.

Shandy is an expert in air pollution and environmental law and has extensive experience representing state, regional, and national clients in environmental matters. Shandy also has deep ties to Norman Public Schools – two of his four children have graduated from Norman Public Schools, and the other two are current students.

Don Shandy’s “Attorney Bio” can be found here.

A July 8, 2010, Norman Transcript article announcing the appointment can be found here.

The activities of OLFC range from interviewing children that have been removed from their homes to temporary representation at show cause hearings to representation in parental termination cases.  Corey Neller, Chance Pearson, and Ivan London are all currently participating in OLFC.

For more information regarding OLFC, please call (405) 232-4453 or visit their website at www.oklahomalawyersforchildren.com.  

In addition to sponsoring the conference, several RWCS attorneys presented during the Conference’s second day. Specifically, RWCS attorneys Mark Coldiron and Stephen Jantzen, along with Byron Starns of the firm Leonard, Street & Deinard of Minneapolis, presented “Session 5B: Courtroom Classics: Preserving Cost Recovery Rights.” The presentation was accompanied by a paper co-authored by the Mark Coldiron, Stephen Jantzen, and Byron Starns along with RWCS associate Ivan London. The paper, titled “Preserving Claims to Recoup Response Costs during Brownfields Redevelopment,” and the PowerPoint presentation can be viewed by clicking the following links:

"Preserving Claims to Recoup Response Costs during Brownfields Redevelopment"

PowerPoint Presentation

In addition, Stephen Jantzen moderated “Session 3A: Sustainable Development: Non-Profits LEED by Example.” During that session, the panel discussed the legal and employment implications for “Green Building”, particularly as the topic relates to Oklahoma.

Brownfields are real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. These often include abandoned or unused commercial and industrial facilities. Redevelopment of Brownfields properties have become a focus for many municipalities, real estate developers and environmental groups due to their revitalization of blighted areas, reuse of strategically located property, and environmental protection.

The 2010 Oklahoma Brownfields Conference gave participants the opportunity to explore the environmental, economical and social benefits of Brownfields redevelopment. Key public and private sector leaders presented their experiences and shared resources regarding, among other things, technical and regulatory considerations, financial incentives, liability protection, and economic development tools.

For more information on the conference please visit: http://www.oklahomabrownfields.com

For more information on Oklahoma’s Brownfields program please visit: http://www.deq.state.ok.us/LPDnew/brownfindex.html

Pros for Africa will feed more than two thousand people (with support from Feed the Children), provide health care to as many as possible (thanks to Drs. Al Moorad, Suben Naidu, John Carey and Rob Tibbes) and dig water wells that will provide for the entire region for years to come (due to the efforts of the Water4 Foundation).  In addition, Pros for Africa will assist in the construction of a small school building and spend countless hours playing games and sports with hundreds of eager children.  Pros for Africa plans to provide the people of Uganda with a little hope, help and love – Oklahoma style.  NEWS 9 and The News On 6 will have live reports starting the week of March 15 and will air a Uganda Special on April 21.

Pros for Africa is a cooperative effort through the Whitten-Newman Foundation and several other organizations and generous individuals who have come together to join Sister Rosemary and the St. Monica Girls’ Tailoring Centre in support of this truly revolutionary initiative. 

For more information on Pros for Africa and its sponsors, or to make a donation, please visit:  http://prosforafrica.com

For more information on the Whitten-Newman Foundation and its other charitable programs, please visit:  http://www.whitten-newmanfoundation.org

• Brazil: groundwater investigation matter.
• Washington State (Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane): matters involving contaminated sediments, CERCLA/MTCA/RCRA sites, EPA/DOJ criminal investigation.
• Montana: industrial facility permitting matter.
• New Mexico: mining site.
• Colorado: industrial facility air pollution issues; wetlands (yes, even in high country.)
• Texas: matters involving air pollution, CERCLA sites, CAFOs, etc.
• Missouri: major industrial facility permitting matter involving water quality, land reclamation, endangered species, and air pollution issues.
• Louisiana: CERCLA site.
• Mississippi: toxic tort exposure and environmental insurance issues.
• Arkansas: CERCLA sites; water quality litigation.
• Alabama: air pollution enforcement.
• South Carolina: air pollution enforcement.
• Illinois: CERCLA site.
• Pennsylvania: CERCLA site.
• New Jersey: CERCLA site.
• Michigan: CERCLA site. 

And of course, investigations, depositions, negotiations, etc. in these and other cases have taken us to multiple far-flung locations in virtually all 50 states and Washington, DC.  Clients can count on RWCS to protect their interests anywhere, anytime.

Backed by top-notch associates, staff, and using the latest technology, the RWCS legal team handles complex litigation including cases involving huge document productions and scores of depositions. 

For example, during 2005-2009, RWCS handled a major toxic tort class action alleging property damage throughout a county-wide area.  RWCS simultaneously defended against the Plaintiffs' allegations and pursued a contribution case against a third-party defendant.  The case involved, among other things, production of more than 300,000 pages of documents by our client, production of more than one million pages of documents by the opposing third-party defendant, and 125 depositions.  More than 75 percent of the depositions lasted one day or longer, including 31 multiple day expert depositions.  The case included very detailed, sophisticated expert work in the following areas:

• County-wide air quality modeling (ambient air concentration as surrogate for ground-level deposition).
• Transmission electron microscope (TEM) analysis of hundreds of samples under ASTM standard.
• Oil refinery and carbon black manufacturing plant operations, air emissions, and control equipment.
• Aerial photography interpretation.
• Damages including alleged county-wide property value diminution and cleaning costs.

In 2010, RWCS also handled mass toxic tort litigation that involved taking the depositions of more than 400 individual plaintiffs and then conducting follow-up inspections of approximately 175 of their homes.  The home inspections were done by a unique team led by an RWCS attorney using four experts:  an experienced environmental forensic consultant to sample inside and outside following ASTM standards for identifying environmental particulate, a Ph.D. forensic and soils expert using a portable microscope, a local contractor with 37 years experience in home remodeling, and, on some occasions, a civil engineer with expertise in analysis of particulate or staining on roofs.  The entire deposition-inspection campaign was conducted during November 2009-June 2010.

The FBA "Lunch with Judges" program takes place once a month on the third Thursday of the month at noon and the judges who speak during the program rotate among the judges of the Western District.  The program is conducted during the lunch hour and gives judges and attorneys an opportunity to get to know one another in a candid and relaxed atmosphere.

Judge Cauthron discussed topics ranging from the Western District's newly revised local rules to tips for drafting briefs.  Those members of RWCS in attendance included Phillip Whaley, Chance Pearson, Ivan London, and Seth Coldiron.

On February 25, 2009, Don Shandy of Ryan Whaley Coldiron Shandy and Don Whitney of Trinity Consultants presented a luncheon seminar in Oklahoma City explaining the recent changes to the Oklahoma Air Rules regarding Excess Emissions Reporting Requirements.

Mr. Shandy gave an informative presentation focused on the reasoning behind the rule change, and in particular explained how the new “Affirmative Defense” option will operate for excess emissions caused during Startup, Shutdown, and Malfunction (SSM) events. Mr. Whitney explained how the new rule will encourage facilities to modify their air permits to include allowances for emissions during SSM events.

More than fifty people attended representing a diverse array of companies including Cardinal Engineering, Chesapeake Energy, DCP Midstream, J.M. Huber, ONEOK, American Airlines, ConocoPhillips, Grand River Dam Authority, Continental Carbon, OG&E, Tronox, Enercon Services, Holcim, WFEC, Jatco, Sinclair Tulsa Refining, United States Air Force, ATC Drivetrain, Oxbow Calcining, Autocraft Industries, Chaparral Energy, Pan Pacific Products, American Electric Products, and Tinker Air Force Base.

Subchapter 9 Update - Excess Emission Seminar, February 25, 2009

The Conference theme was "Restoring Land, Building Community."  Don Shandy of RWCS spoke at the Conference presenting "Complex Brownfields Issues for Municipalities."  Steve Jantzen of RWCS served as a moderator for the Breakout Session on Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Issues.  Others from RWCS in attendance were Keith Klein, Matt Kane, Bruce Robertson, Seth Coldiron, Chance Pearson, and Ivan London.

For more information on Brownfields click here.