The Environmental and Land-Use Group at Carter Ledyard & Milburn is distinguished by its ability to focus on the big picture including clients’ project goals, legal budget and schedule. CLM excels at problem solving within an economical fee structure. That approach significantly helps clients avoid unnecessary costs and time-consuming legal battles, and it maximizes their success rates.
New York City attorney Chris Rizzo combines environmental law, land-use, real estate and litigation on a wide variety of matters that center around the urban environment. This includes transactional matters and disputes arising out of environmental impact reviews for state and city-sponsored projects, local zoning, preservation laws, construction, open space preservation, hazardous materials and more.
On the litigation side, Chris advocates for clients in lawsuits stemming from land use, construction, and contracts disputes. He also works closely with the firm’s real estate and corporate departments on due diligence related to land transactions and corporate mergers and acquisitions.
Chris and the group continue a 30-year tradition of assisting New York state agencies and state public benefit corporations carrying out a wide variety of public projects involving transportation, energy and environmental remediation. He finds it gratifying to help clients shape important public projects to avoid legal pitfalls, withstand litigation and achieve the State’s important public policy goals. Through 30 years of work for New York State, state agencies and municipal agencies the firm has developed leading knowledge and proficiency on the complicated legal relationship between the State and its municipalities.
Beyond the public sector, Chris counsels co-op and condominium clients, not-for-profit and religious organizations, landowners, and institutions on management of their real estate. His team at Carter Ledyard has an unparalleled understanding in particular about nuances of land-use, regulatory and environmental issues throughout the New York metropolitan area. He and his team excel at notifying clients about the issues, permits, and approvals needed for a project or an action, and they diligently assist clients in meeting the schedules and deadlines for projects undergoing assessment.
The 2009-2010 financial crisis and 2020 COVID- 19-pandemic fundamentally re-shaped the way clients (public, private and nonprofit) seek legal services. They want creative solutions and cost-effective advice. At the same time, New York City, New York State and the federal government are taking a more aggressive regulatory approach to the climate change crisis and affordable housing crisis. These two issues continue to define environmental and land-use law in New York. With its deep land-use and environmental experience and the assistance of a full-service law firm, Carter Ledyard is one of the best-positioned law firms in New York to advise on these challenging legal topics.