Steve Jones is Chair of the Environmental and Natural Resources Section. He has extensive experience handling a wide variety of environmental matters in both the litigation and transactional arenas. Mr. Jones has litigated cases under every major environmental statute, including CERCLA, RCRA, the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act, and acted as lead defense counsel in both citizen suits and environmental enforcement actions brought by state and federal agencies. He has extensive experience in obtaining state and federal permits for projects, and handling regulatory approvals, permitting, and compliance for both public and private clients, with particular expertise in representing public utilities in energy generation, transmission, and distribution. He also has broad experience in insurance coverage issues, acting on behalf of insureds.
Awards and Recognition
- Chambers USA in Natural Resources and Environment
- The Best Lawyers in America© 2026 in Environmental Law and Environmental Litigation
- Mountain States Super Lawyers in the categories of Environmental and Environmental Litigation
- Utah’s “Legal Elite,” as published in Utah Business Magazine (2020-2021)
Education
Harvard Law School, J.D., 1989
University College Cardiff, in Cardiff, Wales, U.K., M.A., Political Philosophy, 1987
Utah State University, B.S., Political Science and Philosophy, 1985
Professional and Civic Activity
- Adjunct Professor, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law
- Listed in Best Lawyers in America in Environmental Litigation since 2009; named Best Lawyers "Lawyer of the Year" for the State of Utah in Environmental Litigation in 2017
- Recognized in Utah Business Magazine as one of Utah’s "Legal Elite" in Environmental Litigation since 2017
- Selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers, in Environmental Law since 2004
- Presenter at ABA Annual Environmental Conference, receiving award for best paper at the conference
- Former Editor, ABA Superfund and Natural Resources Litigation Newsletter
Affiliations / Memberships
- American Bar Association, Environment, Energy and Resources Section
- American Bar Association, Litigation Section
- Utah State Bar, Energy, Natural Resources & Environmental Law Section
- Former Chair, Washington State Bar’s Environmental and Land Use Section
Professional Experience
- Holland & Hart LLP, 2013-2019
- Marten Law PLLC, 2002-2013
- Foster Pepper PLLC, 1990-2002
- Admitted to Practice
- Utah State Bar
Washington State Bar
Oregon State Bar
Hawaii State Bar
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
Awards
Presentations and
Publications
- Author, U.S. Supreme Court Overrules Chevron Doctrine (July 2, 2024)
- Jones, S., (Panelist), Developing Dirty Dirt - Environmental Due Diligence in Utah for Financing, Acquisition and Development of Brownfield Properties [Webinar], Ray Quinney & Nebeker (Producer), March 3, 2021
- Author, Corps of Engineers to Streamline Section 408 Permitting Process (March 14, 2018)
- Presenter, “Developing a Defensible Permit Record in the Age of Citizen Suits” (October 2017)
- Presenter, “Environmental and Transactional Risk Insurance: What Lies Ahead?” (July 2017)
- Author, The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same (March 21, 2017)
- Presenter, “Strategic Planning and Public Outreach on Large-Scale Infrastructure Projects,” (March 2017)
- Author, Ninth Circuit Holds that Dispersing Contaminants Into the Air Does Not Constitute 'Disposal’ Under CERCLA (September 22, 2016)
- Presenter, “Public Outreach in Pre-Permitting Stages of a Transmission Project” (January 2016)
- Author, USFWS Lists Gunnison Sage-Grouse as “Threatened Species” Under ESA (December 11, 2014)
- Presenter, “Response to Catastrophic Environmental Events,” Wallace Stegner Center Conference (2014)
- Presenter, “Redefining Waters of the U.S.,” International Minerals Association - North America Annual Meeting (2014)
