Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP has one of the premier pesticide law practices in the United States. The practice represents the entire breadth of the pesticide industry with a focus on agricultural chemicals, but also includes structural and residential pesticides and biocides. Our team is composed of highly skilled attorneys with extensive state and federal regulatory and enforcement experience, who, together with our staff scientists are able to address any regulatory issue that an industry participant might encounter.
Our practice covers the regulatory landscape at every step of the process. We develop and submit registration applications to the necessary regulatory authorities, including management of all necessary laboratory studies. We draft and produce labels. We obtain tolerances. We represent pesticides manufacturers, importers, distributors and applicators in state and federal enforcement matters. We counsel our clients in regulatory issues and work closely with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state agency personnel on regulatory and enforcement matters.
Although the group primarily represents manufacturers and importers of generic pesticides, we also have significant experience in representing makers of proprietary pesticides. This experience includes developing protocols, placing and monitoring studies required by the EPA Office of Pesticide Programs for registration of technical and end use products, and bringing claims for data compensation.
To all we do we bring the Carter Ledyard touch – people with years of experience who are knowledgeable not only in the law and regulatory regimen but who also know the industry, the companies, developing trends and the business needs of its participants. When you want a first-class pesticides practice, we are here.
Substantive Areas
Data Compensation
Our Pesticides Practice Group is one of the most experienced in the country in representing pesticides manufacturers – both data owners and citers of data – in data compensation negotiations and arbitrations under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Our success in pesticides data compensation negotiations, arbitrations and settlements is the hallmark of our practice.
We provide analyses of the amount of data compensation a new entrant can be expected to pay to data owners and negotiate the terms of data compensation agreements. When agreement on compensation cannot be reached, we represent companies in FIFRA arbitration proceedings before the American Arbitration Association (AAA). We have negotiated settlements in dozens of cases ranging from small matters to claims of more than $20 million. We have successfully represented companies in arbitrations before the AAA against both individual companies and data task forces.
In representing smaller companies seeking to enter a market dominated by larger companies, our representation is vigorous, strategic and detail-oriented yet cost efficient. We work as a team to evaluate issues and litigate fiercely while constantly seeking the certainty of a settlement for our client. Our creativity and unyielding advocacy, combined with our understanding of the business setting, sets us apart and has enabled us to reach favorable settlements time after time for our clients.
Entry into the U.S. Market
We are one of the leading practices assisting companies to enter the U.S. crop protection market. Most pesticides are produced outside the U.S. and imported to the U.S. By providing competition in the marketplace, our generic producer clients help distributors and farmers obtain high quality products at a competitive price to produce and protect the foods that Americans consume and export.
CL&M has counseled companies from throughout the world regarding the importation and sale of pesticides in the U.S. We have worked with many companies from their nascent interest in the U.S. market through successful entry, overcoming difficult barriers to entry imposed by the dominant economic interests. Our experienced staff scientists work with clients to develop the necessary data, complete the applications required by state and federal authorities, and help to develop labels that will be approved by the regulatory agencies. We represented the first Indian company, the first South Korean company and the first Taiwanese company to enter the U.S. market by obtaining registrations for technical-grade generic pesticides.
Enforcement Defense
We are experienced in representing many pesticide registrants and other market participants in response to state and federal enforcement actions. Our attorneys have served in federal and state government, where they were involved in some of the earliest pesticides enforcement actions. We have defended clients whose products have been alleged to lack registration or to be misbranded or adulterated, and have secured beneficial settlements in cases where enforcement authorities have sought significant penalties. We have also been successful in securing approvals of creative environmental benefit projects as part of enforcement settlements.
Representative Clients
Among our clients are: Axss USA, LLC, AgSaver LLC, Cheminova, LG LifeSciences, Petro-Canada, Rotam Agricultural Chemicals, Sinon, and Virbac Corporation.
Professional Activities
Leonard Miller is the President and Co-Founder of the US Environmental Protection Agency Alumni Association and a Member of the Council of Partners, Environmental Law Institute. Telisport Putsavage is Pesticide Committee Chair and a member of the Environment Section Executive Committee of the New York Bar Association, and a member of the CropLife America and Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment (RISE) Law Committee. Robert G. Butz, Ph.D. is a member of the American Chemical Society (ACS), Agro Division.