Lisa Uselton Dyar

Lisa’s environmental practice focuses on advancing clients’ business objectives in a variety of industries. Lisa has extensive experience in all areas of environmental law, including permitting, enforcement, litigation, acquisitions, compliance, auditing, and rulemaking matters. Lisa has represented clients in obtaining permit authorization through Texas’ contested case hearing process.

Early in her career, Lisa served as a senior enforcement attorney in the Litigation Division of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. There, she was recognized for her outstanding leadership as lead counsel for some of the agency’s most complex and high-profile air and multimedia enforcement cases, and for drafting statewide consolidated environmental enforcement legislation, now codified in Chapter 7 of the Texas Water Code.

Lisa has served clients on a wide range of environmental issues, including:

PERMITTING

• Representing clients before the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency in applications for air, water, and waste permit applications for major projects
• Leading and supporting clients in contested case hearings before the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH)
• Providing legal representation to obtain air and water permits for construction of world scale petrochemical complex
• Developing and advocating air quality permitting strategies for chemical companies
• Representing global client in permitting Class I underground injection control wells
• Collaborating with engineering, modeling and toxicology experts related to air issues

ENFORCEMENT

• Representing industrial clients and businesses in environmental enforcement cases before TCEQ and EPA
• Strategic counseling and assistance related to regulatory and internal investigations
• Representing major energy client in Clean Air Act federal citizen suit
• Extensive experience related to episodic air emissions events
• Negotiating administrative and civil enforcement settlement agreements

Acquisitions

• Advising clients in all phases of business transitions related to environmental issues

PUBLIC INFORMATION

• Evaluating and protecting confidential business information, including trade secrets, under state and federal public information statutes

REGULATORY

• Counseling clients regarding air, water, and waste regulatory requirements, guidance and interpretations
• Managing and supporting environmental compliance audits
• Advising clients on Title V compliance matters
• Preparing comments to proposed rulemaking, legislation, and advocacy initiatives

News

Publications

• Chambers & Partners USA, Environment, Band 4, 2020
• Listed in Chambers and Partners USA Guide to America, 2019
• Outstanding Leadership Award, Outstanding Women in Texas Government, 1998
• Alpha Phi Omega Active Service Award, 1988

• State Bar of Texas, Environmental and Natural Resources Section, Executive Committee Member and Education Committee Co-Chair
• Austin Bar Association, Environment, Natural Resources and Water Law Section
• Central Texas Food Bank