Charles Knauss

Charles H. Knauss has been repeatedly lauded by clients in Chambers USA. From 2011 through 2016, Chambers USA has reported that Chuck impresses clients with his “extraordinary strategic and analytical capabilities—he finds solutions others just cannot see … and has great understanding of how government agencies work.”

For more than 30 years he has been on the frontlines of environmental law, pioneering work on behalf of clients in the US manufacturing and energy sectors. Clients call him a “legend in the field” and an “absolutely superb lawyer, top of [our] list,” “extraordinarily smart and very strategic in his thinking, … extremely creative … and … understands business needs.”

His “formidable knowledge of the Clean Air Act” distinguishes him as “one of the very few top air law practitioners in the country” and among “the best air lawyers in DC today.

Peers and clients alike recognize Chuck’s ability to craft and negotiate effective regulatory and legislative solutions to intractable problems, regardless of subject matter.

As a result, clients often call upon him in crisis situations in a wide array of areas ranging from financial to energy or environmental matters, seeking his input on tax, food safety, pesticides, contaminated sediments or transportation issues, among many others.

Chuck represents a wide variety of companies and trade associations in nearly every area of environmental law, helping them navigate complex federal, state and local regulations and manage high-stakes crises, negotiations, communication strategies and precedent-setting litigation.

He provides strategic advice to achieve negotiated settlements with governmental regulatory and enforcement authorities and other stakeholders. His negotiation approach grounds legal and policy arguments on sound analysis of technical and engineering facts, which he couples with a fair and principled recognition of the core goals of all parties.

As an example of his impressive skill in this area, Chuck obtained a consensus among EPA headquarters, EPA regional officials, state regulators and community groups on plant wide, 10-year air permits recognized by many as the most innovative ever issued.

Listed among the trailblazers, Chuck was recognized for his pioneering work as lead negotiator as Counsel to the House Energy and Commerce Committee for the landmark 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments ― the most significant environmental and economic legislation in the past 25 years with sweeping new opportunities for public oversight and enforcement of environmental laws ― as well as for his body of work implementing the statute on behalf of industrial clients.

EDUCATION:

• JD, University of Michigan Law School, 1981
• BA, Brown University, 1977

BAR ADMISSIONS:

• District of Columbia

GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE:

• Counsel, Energy and Commerce Committee, US House of Representatives