Jonathan H. Schaefer provides experienced and reasoned advice to a wide range of regional, national, and international clients on environmental, health and safety, and energy matters.
He focuses his practice on environmental compliance counseling, permitting, transactions, site remediation, occupational health and safety, energy regulatory compliance and siting, and regulatory enforcement related to federal and state regulatory programs. Jon’s experiences working on complex matters for over a decade enable him to work effectively with experts and in-house legal counsel to assist clients in minimizing risk and effectively and efficiently resolving compliance, enforcement, transactional, and regulatory matters.
Jon is also the editor of the Environmental Law+ blog, which presents clients and readers across a wide range of industries and businesses with a timely and thoughtful forum for discussion on environmental, health and safety, and energy topics.
Environmental Counseling
Jon consistently counsels clients in connection with their compliance efforts under a multitude of federal, state, and local environmental programs. He advises clients on site cleanup efforts and the costs and obligations related to such efforts. He has served on a Superfund site steering committee and provided counsel on brownfield clean-up efforts. He works closely with his clients, experts, and other lawyers to creatively solve his clients’ risk management challenges. Jon helps clients comply with all state and federal environmental laws, such as the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act; the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; the Clean Air Act; the Clean Water Act; the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act; the Connecticut Transfer Act; and most other federal and state environmental statutes.
Health + Safety (OSHA)
Jon regularly counsels business clients on a multitude of health and safety issues that arise from their operations. He helps with the review of health and safety procedures, assists with EH+S audits, and works with clients to develop health and safety plans. He represents clients before the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, including evaluating alleged violations and defending clients against citations.
Environmental Transactions
Jon regularly advises a wide variety of corporate and individual clients on environmental risk and liability associated with transactions. Jon brings a reasoned and detailed approach to the management and allocation of risk and liability from his experiences representing both sellers and purchasers on transactions with complex environmental histories and futures. Jon’s focus in a transaction is to reach a closing where the client achieves the right balance of deal success and environmental risk.
Environmental - Dispute Resolution
When environmental disputes arise, Jon helps clients resolve problems through alternative dispute resolution. He also represents clients subject to environmental enforcement throughout the United States. Jon has experience representing clients in disputes involving federal and state environmental laws. This experience enables him to assist his clients with an appropriate strategy to position the client to pursue a favorable settlement or other resolution. He has assisted his clients in reaching favorable settlements with private parties and governmental agencies in several environmental and energy matters.
Energy Regulatory + Siting
Jon appears before state utility regulatory and siting authorities in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire on energy, siting, and utility matters. He counsels renewable and alternative energy clients on regulatory compliance and appears regularly before the Connecticut Siting Council and Public Utilities Regulatory Authority.
Pro Bono
Jon regularly does pro bono work. He assists the Connecticut Veterans Legal Center, by providing legal assistance to veterans who are facing eviction and representing veterans as they navigate through their benefit appeals.
Prior to joining Robinson+Cole, Jon interned with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and with the U.S. Attorney's Office.
