Clara is a member of the firm’s land use practice group and has extensive experience representing developers, property owners, and municipal clients in the areas of land use, environmental, real estate, and municipal law. Her practice focuses on securing and defending permitting for energy facilities and other major infrastructure projects facing significant opposition, helping clients navigate issues arising under the Washington State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Shoreline Management Act, Growth Management Act (GMA), and other local, state, and federal land use and environmental laws. She counsels clients on developing comprehensive permitting strategies and regularly litigates before local adjudicators, state administrative tribunals, and state and federal courts to defend project approvals and agency actions. 

She previously worked at a mid-sized law firm in Honolulu, Hawaii, where her practice focused on land use and commercial litigation. Before entering private practice, Clara served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Daniel R. Foley of the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals, where she assisted in drafting opinions. 

Clara serves as the firm's Pro Bono Coordinator.

  • Experience
    • Represented the City of Seattle in defending the City’s environmental review of several land use proposals in appeals before the Hearing Examiner and the Growth Management Hearings Board, including working with the City Attorney’s Office to defend Environmental Impact Statements for the City’s Mandatory Housing Affordability policy and changes to regulations governing accessory dwelling units, as well as the Seattle Department of Transportation’s Environmental Impact Statement for the Burke Gilman Missing Link project, a final step in a nearly thirty year legal dispute over completion of the gap in the multi-use trail.
    • Represents Puget Sound Energy, the largest energy utility in the Pacific Northwest, on land use, environmental review, and permitting matters for major energy infrastructure projects across multiple jurisdictions, including work on the Energize Eastside transmission line, a high voltage transmission project spanning four cities.
    • Provides ongoing land use support for the City of Cle Elum, including advising on the Bullfrog Urban Growth Area project, a transformative development featuring over 1,000 homes, commercial spaces, and public infrastructure such as parks and recreational facilities, and assisting the City with broader planning and permitting matters to help manage growth responsibly and sustainably in alignment with community values and regulatory frameworks.
    • Represents independent power producers in land use, environmental review, and permitting for major generation, transmission, and distribution projects, including coordination with local governments during project development. 
    • Provided land use counsel for an energy developer's standalone battery energy storage projects in Washington State, including local, state, and federal permitting needed to acquire, construct, and operate large scale BESS facilities.

  • Professional Affiliations
  • Awards & Honors
    Super Lawyers
    Rising Stars, 2016-2017, 2019-2020

    Hawaii State Bar Association Leadership Institute Fellow, 2015

  • Bar & Court Admissions
    Washington State Bar
    U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
    Washington State Court of Appeals (Div I, II, III)
    U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington
    U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • Government Service
  • News & Presentations

    News

    Presentations

    Shoreline Development & Permitting(6/9/2026)
    Program Co-Chair, Presenter, "Shoreline Case Law Update"
    The Seminar Group
    Seattle, WA
    CLE Bootcamp(12/11/2025)
    Presenter, "Environmental Law & Climate Update"
    The Seminar Group
    Seattle, WA
    2025 Northwest & Intermountain Power Producers Coalition (NIPPC) Annual Meeting(9/7/2025)
    Presenter, "Hits, Misses, and More: Programmatic Environmental Review of Washington Clean Energy Siting"
    Northwest Intermountain Power Producers Coalition (NIPPC)
    Union, WA
    Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys 2022 Conference(10/10/2022)
    Presenter, "Land Use Case Law Update"
    Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys
    Hearing Examiner Association of Washington Conference(10/3/2022)
    Presenter, "No Net Loss Under the Shoreline Management Act: Its Past, Present, and Future"
    Hearing Examiners Association of Washington Annual Conference
    Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys 2021 Conference(10/4/2021)
    Presenter, "Land Use Case Law Update"
    Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys
    Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys 2020 Conference(10/14/2020)
    Presenter, "Trial By Zoom in the Age of Coronavirus"
    Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys
    Hearing Examiner Association of Washington Conference(10/1/2019)
    Presenter, "Case Study re: Seattle’s ADU Legislation, SEPA challenge, and potential as a coming attraction for other jurisdictions in the region?"
    Hearing Examiners Association of Washington Annual Conference
  • Thought Leadership

Education

University of Michigan Law School J.D., cum laude, 2012

Washington University in St. Louis B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, 2009