Alan N. Bick is a partner in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher's Orange County office. He is a member of the Litigation Department and a Co-Chair of the firm's Environmental Litigation and Mass Tort Practice Group. Mr. Bick has extensive experience in Cost Recovery Actions under CERCLA, RCRA, and the State Equivalents; Defense of Agency Enforcement Actions; Mass and Toxic Tort Defense; and CEQA, NEPA and ESA Litigation.

Cost Recovery Actions

Mr. Bick has significant experience in managing private cost recovery litigation in state and federal court involving CERCLA and RCRA, and the state analogs to these federal programs. Representative matters include:

Defending a multi-million CERCLA response cost and natural resource damage claim in Oregon involving contaminated sediments along thirteen miles of the Willamette River arising from a wide variety of industrial activity over a 100 year period
Defending a multi-million dollar State cost recovery claim in Alaska involving the remediation of a former cold war White Alice Communications System (WACs) facility owned by the United States Air Force
Defending a multi-million dollar State law cost recovery action in Southern California involving solvent contamination arising from manufacturing of printed circuit boards
Prosecuting a $250 million dollar CERCLA action against the United States for contribution based on government involvement at a contractor operated rocket research, development and production facility in California
Prosecuting a $70 million dollar CERCLA contribution action against the United States based on government ownership and operation of a U.S. Navy shipyard in Seattle, Washington from World War II through the 1960s.

Agency Enforcement Actions

Mr. Bick has defended clients in numerous State and Federal enforcement actions, involving a variety of different statutory and regulatory programs. Representative matters include:

Defense of a former aluminum industry client in a RCRA cleanup action in the State of Oregon
Defense of an aerospace manufacturing client in a large CERCLA/RCRA groundwater cleanup action in Southern California
Defense of a former shipbuilding client in a large CERCLA action in Seattle, Washington
Defense of an ordinance manufacturing client in a California DTSC RCRA action
Defense of an aerospace manufacturing client in a multi-million dollar state claim in California involving groundwater contamination
Defense of a manufacturing client in California involving allegations of civil and criminal violations of hazardous waste law
Defense of a food industry client in a citizen suit in California alleging Clean Water Act violations of pre-treatment standards
Defense of numerous clients across a wide range of industries in California Proposition 65 actions

Mass and Toxic Tort Defense

Mr. Bick has defended clients facing a variety of mass tort/toxic tort claims. Representative matters include:

A mass tort claim filed in Federal District court brought by persons claiming injury from radionuclides allegedly emitted by a Department of Energy nuclear weapons facility
A “contaminated community” toxic tort case in Federal District court involving allegations of exposure to hexavalent chromium, PCE and TCE in air and groundwater
A mass tort claim filed in California state court involving more than 3800 plaintiffs alleging personal injury and property damage for releases of solvents and metals from an aircraft manufacturing facility
A multi-party toxic tort case in California state court involving personal injury and property damage for releases of TCE and perchlorate from a variety of alleged sources within a federal Superfund site
Representing aircraft servicing company in preparing for possible tort litigation relating to aircraft refurbishing operations and TCE contamination associated with an airport

CEQA and NEPA Litigation

Mr. Bick has extensive experience in litigating CEQA, NEPA, ESA and related environmental disputes. Representative matters include:

Prosecuting NEPA and CEQA actions against the United States Department of the Interior and California state and local agencies regarding the listing of the Stephens' Kangaroo Rat under the federal ESA
Prosecuting NEPA and CEQA actions against federal and state agencies arising from the multi-billion CALFED Bay-Delta Program's impacts on agricultural resources
Prosecuting CEQA action against a California county in connection with a proposed race track and related development
Prosecuting a CEQA action against the State of California for the improper use of a categorical exemption in connection with the conversion of agricultural land to other uses
Defending a CEQA action arising from the imposition of improper development fees in connection with a single family housing project

Mr. Bick also advises clients on environmental compliance issues and environmental audits, and provides legal advice on due diligence and allocation of risks in real estate and corporate transactions.

Mr. Bick has been with the firm since 1990, following his graduation from Stanford Law School. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and government from Dartmouth College in 1983, graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa.