Christopher Rizzo, Associate - Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP Attorney

Practice Areas

Environmental, Litigation

Practice Description

Environmental, Land Use, Litigation

Education

B.A., 1997 Manhattan College (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa)
J.D., 2001 Pace University School of Law School (cum laude; Articles Editor, Pace Environmental Law Review; Certificate of Environmental Law)

Admissions

2001 New Jersey
2002 New York
2002 U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
2002 U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey
2004 U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
2007 District of Columbia

Affiliations

Co-chair of the Parks and Historic Preservation Committee of the Environmental Law Section of the New York State Bar Association
Member of the Law Committee of the Municipal Art Society of New York
Member of the Pace University School of Law Alumni Board

Publications Available on this website...

"Landlords Must Disclose Contaminated Indoor Air," Client Advisory, October 23, 2008; "Courts Split on Eligibility Guidance for N.Y.’s Brownfield Program," Client Advisory, September 23, 2008; "New York Moves Forward with Three Important Environmental Initiatives on Climate Change, Property Taxes and Brownfields," Client Advisory, July 7, 2008; "New York and Other States Accelerate Efforts to Address Climate Change," Client Advisory, November 2007; "Overview of the Role of Renewable Energy in Legal Efforts to Address Climate Change," October 20, 2007; "N.Y.'s Neighbors: Recognizing Same-Sex Couples Is Norm," New York Law Journal, July 13, 2007; "Governor Spitzer Proposes Changes to Brownfield Tax Credits," Client Advisory, June 19, 2007; "Overlapping Rules Confuse Many in Brownsfield Program," Real Estate Weekly, April 19, 2006; "IRS Solicits Applications for Qualified Green Building and Sustainable Design Project Bonds," Client Advisory, July 27, 2005

Additional Publications

“N.Y. Brownfield Redevelopment in 2006: More Clarity and Tax Deductions,” Real Estate Weekly, February 7, 2006; “Diseañdo un Rol Global para los Amici en los Casos Referidos a la Material Ambiental y de los Derechos Humanos,” Revista de Derecho Ambiental, October/November 2005, Lexis Nexis Argentina Publisher; (“Charting a Global Role for ‘Amici’ in Environmental and Human Rights Cases,” Environmental Law Journal); “New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation Sets Tougher Brownfields Rules,” Long Island Business News, July 8, 2005; “New York’s Brownfield Law: Relief For Innocent and Not So Innocent Landowners,” American Bar Association, Environmental Litigation and Toxic Torts Committee Newsletter, July 2005; “Local Applications Narrow Eligibility in Brownfield Program,” New York Law Journal, June 28, 2005; “Zoning Variances and the New York City Board of Standards and Appeals,” 20 Columbia Environmental Law Journal 3, Spring 2005; “Brownfield Redevelopment Opportunities in NYS,” Real Estate Weekly, February 2, 2005; “After Sosa: Claims Under the Alien Tort Claims Act- Part III,” New York Law Journal, December 23, 2004 (co-authored); “After ‘Sosa’: Claims Under the Alien Tort Claims Act- Part II,” New York Law Journal, October 26, 2004 (co-authored); “After Sosa: Claims Under the Alien Tort Claims Act- Part I,” New York Law Journal, August 27, 2004 (co-authored); “Enhancing the Protection of Parkland in New York,” 15 Environmental. Law in New York 6, June 2004 Matthew Bender Publisher; “Protecting the Environment at the Local Level, New York City’s Special District Approach,” 13 Fordham Environmental Law Journal 2, 2002 (Reprinted in The New York Environmental Lawyer, Vol. 23, No. 2, 2003); “Banning State Recognition of Same Sex Relationships: The Constitutional Implications of Nebraska’s Initiative,” 416, 11 Brooklyn Journal of Law and Policy, Vol. 1, 2003; “Environmental Law and Justice In New York City, Where a Park is not Just a Park,” 18 Pace Environmental Law Review 167, 2000 (NYSBA, Municipal Law Section, James A. Coon Award)

Presentations

New Yorkers for Parks, "Parkland Alienation and Environmental Impact Review," February 14, 2008
Municipal Art Society, "Studies of the New York City Board of Standards and Appeals," December 5, 2007
Pace Law School: 30^th Anniversary of the Environmental Law Program, October 20, 2007 “The Legal Implications of Climate Change: The Future of Renewable Energy in the United States”
New York State Bar Association: Environmental Law Section Meeting, October 13, 2007 “SEQRA and the Alienation of Parkland"
37^th Annual Advanced ALI-ABA Course Study: Environmental Law, February 8-9, 2007 and February 6, 2008, (Introduction to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and the Comprehensive Environment Response Compensation and Liability Act)
Environmental Law Institute: “Introduction to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act," July 28, 2005, July 27, 2006, July 19, 2007 and July 17, 2008
Preservation 2004 Conference: “Using Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and Section 4F of the Department of Transportation Act to Preserve the TWA Terminal at JFK Airport,” Skidmore College, March 2004

Prior Experience

2002-2004 Menapace Fellowship, Municipal Art Society of New York, Inc.
2001-2002 Associate, Environmental Department, Law Firm of Cole, Schotz, Meisel, Forman and Leonard LLP

Languages

Working knowledge of Spanish and Italian

Illustrative Matters

Advise clients on impact of climate change legislation.
Represent state agencies carrying out environmental impact review pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act and State Environmental Quality Review Act.
Represent land owners, developers and community members in local land use and zoning matters.
Advise clients on redevelopment of brownfields and management of hazardous materials.
Advise clients on compliance with historic preservation laws such as Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, the New York State Historic Preservation Act and local preservation laws.
Litigation in state and federal courts.
Litigation of international contract dispute in federal court involving sale of timber by Mississippi company in Italy.
Advise clients on state wetland permits and water supply permits.
Advise government and nonprofit organizations on the use of parkland and open space.