Terese (T.C.) Richmond

Partner

Contact

206-437-9403 ter@vnf.com Contact Assistant Seattle, WA

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Terese (T.C.) Richmond works with state and local governmental agencies, and non-profit organizations serving the public sector. Her practice focuses on water law, climate change, and environmental and land use law. She has broad experience in natural resource policy, laws and regulations, and the governance of large organizations, and public-private partnerships.

Experience
- T.C. currently serves as General Counsel for Cascade Water Alliance, a joint municipal utility corporation composed of Puget Sound cities and special-purpose districts that operate a water supply system and regional assets to meet its members' current and future drinking water needs.
- Serves as counsel for public and private organizations, including water districts, on land use and local, state, and federal permitting, the application of state and municipal laws to all organizational functions, State Environmental Policy Act and climate change, public contracting and procurement, open government, asset and risk management, recreational immunity, water quality (e.g. stormwater, neighbor discharges, and PFAS), permitting and real estate.
- Served as the Vice-Chair of the National Climate Assessment Development and Advisory Committee where she led the 60-person Federal Advisory Committee that oversaw the development of the Third National Climate Assessment. T.C. currently serves on the Board of Advisors of the Dividing the Waters Program of The National Judicial College and as a Convener of Science to Climate Action formed in response to recommendations on improvements to the US Sustained National Climate Assessment addressed to federal science agencies, state and municipal governments, and civil society organizations.
- Served as Senior Counsel for the Attorney General's Office-University of Washington Division. There, she represented the University in the areas of environmental law, campus planning, local land use, real estate, environmental health and safety, export control and laws applicable to open government law and supporting non-profit affiliates. As an Assistant Attorney General, T.C. also represented the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Washington Department of Ecology in state and federal trial and appellate courts and served on the Attorney General Formal Opinion Committee. Her representation of WDFW included rulemaking and enforcement matters in administrative hearings, and state and federal trial and appellate courts in matters related to fishery and shellfish management, habitat, wildlife, hunting, and tribal treaty rights. Her representation of Ecology was primarily in state and federal trial and appellate courts, in administrative hearings, and in negotiations. Areas of concentration were federal pesticide laws, federal Superfund and hazardous waste laws, and the state and federal Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act.
- Served as Special Assistant to the Governor, Washington State, to negotiate federal water resource legislation with Congressional delegation, Indian tribes, agricultural interests, environmental groups, and federal agencies in the Yakima River Basin, and worked with media, local governmental entities, state legislature, and the public.
- Served as a Deputy Director and subsequently as Chief Counsel to the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR). As Deputy Director of the ADWR’s Tucson office, T.C. drafted the Conservation Management Plans for the municipal and agricultural sectors required by the Arizona Groundwater Act. As Chief Counsel to the ADWR from 1991 to 1995, she provided legal counsel to the Director and supervising the department's legal staff in all legal matters, including assured water supply, interstate negotiations, Indian water rights settlements, endangered species act issues, state and federal legislation, and the developing programs in conservation, aquifer recharge, underground storage, banking, general stream adjudications, and state and federal water rights appropriation processes.
- Served as a King County Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, Transit and Water Quality Section, counseled on environmental issues including those related to planning, construction, and operation of waste water treatment plants, water supply issues, electrical utility regulation, bio-solids regulation, and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and SEPA
- Served as a Law Clerk, Justice Robert Brachtenbach. Washington State Supreme Court.
Professional Affiliations

Dividing the Waters, National Judicial College

Board of Advisors

Washington Wildlife and Recreation Coalition

Board Member

Science to Climate Action

Convener

City of Edmonds, WA, Mayor's Climate Protection Committee

Co-Chair

Federal Advisory Committee for the National Climate Assessment

Vice Chair, 2011-2014

Salish Sea Expeditions

Board of Directors and Council of Advisors, 2008-2018
Awards & Honors

"Best Lawyers in America" by Best Lawyers
Environmental Law, 2010-2022
Land Use & Zoning Law, 2013-2022
Litigation-Environmental, 2011-2022

"Super Lawyers" by Washington Super Lawyers Magazine
Washington State, 2011-2015
Bar & Court Admissions

Washington State Bar

New Mexico State Bar

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona
Government Service

Washington State Attorney General's Office

Senior Counsel and Assistant Attorney General, 1985-1989, 1997-2007
Formal Opinion Committee, 2004-2007

Arizona Department of Water Resources

General Counsel, Deputy Director of Tucson Office, 1990-1995
Washington State Governor's Office

Special Assistant to the Governor, 1989-1990

King County, Washington

Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, Transit and Water Quality Section, 1996-1997

Washington State Supreme Court

Law clerk to the Honorable Justice Robert Brachtenbach,1985
News & Presentations

News

For 17th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Attorneys Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/19/2021)

Van Ness Feldman Recognized as Go-To Thought Leader by the National Law Review(1/4/2021)

For 16th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Attorneys Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/20/2020)

For 15th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Attorneys Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/15/2019)

Science for Climate Action Network Launch Helps Communities Establish Climate Action Pathways(4/10/2019)

T.C. Richmond Joins Board of the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Coalition(11/13/2018)

For 14th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Attorneys Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/15/2018)

For 13th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Professionals Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/15/2017)

For 12th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Professionals Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/15/2016)

For 11th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Professionals Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/17/2015)

For 10th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Professionals Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(8/18/2014)

For 9th Consecutive Year, Van Ness Feldman Professionals Are Among the Best Lawyers in America(9/9/2013)

26 Van Ness Feldman Attorneys Named Best Lawyers in America for 2013(9/14/2012)

Presentations

Critical Infrastructure: Cybersecurity in the Post-Colonial Pipeline World(6/30/2021)

11th Northwest Climate Conference(4/6/2021)
Presenter, “Engagement to Support Local Government Climate Action: Perspectives from Public Outreach, Science, and Citizen Leaders”

How to Protect Communities: Facilitating and Coordinating Responses to Disasters(6/11/2020)
American Bar Association

Water Law and Research Management in Washington(6/27/2019)
Speaker, "Policy and Utility Perspectives on the Best Strategies to Increase Resilience to the Impacts of Climate Change on Water Resources"

Law Seminars International

Seattle, WA

2019 Northwest Land Camp(6/20/2019)
Speaker, "Incorporating Climate Change Resilience, Mitigation, and Carbon Finance into Planning and Decision Making Processes"

Northwest Land Camp

Walla Walla, WA

2019 Environmental and Land Use Law Section Midyear Meeting & Conference(5/2/2019)
Speaker, "Climate Change: Adaptation and Increasing Resilience and How to Incorporate Climate Science into Decision Making"

Washington State Bar Association

Union, WA

16th Annual SEPA & NEPA Seminar(1/11/2019)
Presenter, "The Procedural Differences Between NEPA and SEPA"

Law Seminars International

Seattle, WA

ABA 2017 Water Law Conference(3/28/2017)
Panelist, "Water Infrastructure and Climate Change: What Happens When the Past is No Longer Prologue?"

American Bar Association

Los Angeles, California

Addressing Climate Change in the West(2/16/2017)
Panel Moderator, "Local Level Adaptation/Resilience Strategies"

Law Seminars International

Seattle, Washington

14th Annual SEPA & NEPA Seminar(1/13/2017)
Presenter, “What Next for Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Final Guidance on Greenhouse Gases and Climate Change Impacts”

Law Seminars International

Seattle, WA

2016 Aspen-Nicholas Water Forum(5/18/2016)
Speaker

Aspen, CO

Water Finance Forum(3/31/2016)
Speaker, "Financing Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure"

Portland, OR

International Water & Climate Forum 2015(12/7/2015)
Speaker, "Pipeline Safety Enforcement and Compliance: Recent Trends and Developments"

San Diego, CA

International Water & Climate Forum 2015(12/7/2015)
Panel Moderator

San Diego, CA

2015 AWRA Washington State Conference - Water Management Strategies in the Face of Climate Change(10/22/2015)
Speaker, “Climate Change Economic Considerations: Risk Management Framework”

Seattle, Washington

13th Annual Higher Education Real Estate Lawyers Conference(10/1/2015)
Presenter

University of Washington

Seattle, WA

13th Annual Higher Education Real Estate Lawyers Conference(10/1/2015)
Speaker, “Context for Viewing Climate Change on College Campuses”

University of Washington

Seattle, WA

Preparing for Climate Change - New Regulations and New Litigation(11/12/2014)
"Environmental Impact Statements/Environmental Impact Assessments - Incorporating Climate Change and CO2 into Required Documents"

The Seminar Group

Seattle, WA

2014 AASHE Annual Conference & Expo(10/26/2014)
Co-presenter, "Campus, Community & Corporate Partnerships for Climate Adaptation and Resilience"

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education

Portland, OR

2014 AFN Annual Convention(10/23/2014)
Presenter, "National Climate Assessment"

Anchorage, AK
Thought Leadership

Alerts

UPDATED: EPA and Army Corps Announce Latest Update to Definition of "Waters of the United States"(12/7/2021)

U.S. Supreme Court Relies on Established Doctrine in Interstate Groundwater Dispute(12/2/2021)

EPA and Army Corps Announce Latest Update to Definition of "Waters of the United States"(11/29/2021)

Democrats Coalesce on Energy and Climate Message Ahead of 2020 Election(7/22/2020)

Escalated Tension with Iran Heightens Cybersecurity Threat Despite Military De-Escalation(1/8/2020)

WaterISAC Releases Broader Cybersecurity Guidelines for Water & Waste Water Utilities(7/29/2019)

Washington State's New Clean Energy Legislation Has Far Reaching Impacts(5/23/2019)

EPA Issues New Emergency Response Requirements for Community Water Systems(4/3/2019)

Federal Administration Issues Climate Report(12/6/2018)

GAO Reports Challenges and Successes in Cybersecurity Framework Adoption(3/5/2018)

Western Water/Growing Cities: An Examination of 11 States' Approach to the Issue(11/14/2017)

Climate Change Policy Developments in Washington State(3/23/2017)

Contracts 101: Knowing What You Know/Don't Know Can Make All the Difference(4/20/2016)

New Rule & Initiatives to Limit Carbon Gaining Traction in Washington State(1/11/2016)

A Context for Viewing Climate Change in the Northwest(9/15/2015)

Final Environmental Analysis for Keystone XL Pipeline Project Elevates Climate Change Issues(2/5/2014)

Updates / Newsletters

Northwest Land Matters Update - December 2017(12/6/2017)

Northwest Land Matters Update - April 2016(4/26/2016)

Northwest Land Matters Update - March 2016(3/18/2016)

Northwest Land Matters Update - May 2015(5/19/2015)

Publications

The Purposeful Tension Within the Doctrine of Beneficial Use(8/2/2021)
Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation Journal, Vol. 58 Issue 1 pp. 33-71

Bridging the Gap with the Science for Climate Action Network(4/4/2019)
American Geophysical Union

Evaluating Knowledge to Support Climate Action: A Framework for Sustained Assessment(4/4/2019)
Weather, Climate, and Society Journal of the AMS

A Framework for Sustained Climate Assessment in the United States(4/1/2019)
Bulletin of American Meteorological Society

Building a Sustained Climate Assessment Process(9/21/2015)
Climatic Change, pp. 1-15

The Third National Climate Assessment: The Role of District Energy and Combined Heat and Power(4/1/2015)
District Energy, Second Quarter, pp. 19

2014 National Climate Assessment(5/12/2014)
Climate Change Impacts in the United States: The Third National Climate Assessment, Melillo, Jerry M., Terese (T.C.) Richmond, and Gary W. Yohe, Eds., U.S. Global Change Research Program

2014 Highlights of Climate Change Impacts in the United States(5/11/2014)
Climate Change Impacts in the United States: The Third National Climate Assessment, Melillo, Jerry M., Terese (T.C.) Richmond, and Gary W. Yohe, Eds., U.S. Global Change Research Program

Planning for District Energy, CHP and Microgrids: A checklist for campus administrators(1/1/2014)
District Energy, First Quarter 2014, pp. 36

2013 Report on Preparing the Nation for Change: Building a Sustained National Climate Assessment Process(12/1/2013)
Contributing author, National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee

Conservation Tools: An Evaluation and Comparison of the Use of Certain Land Preservation Mechanisms(12/23/2009)
Prepared for the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office pursuant to SHB 1957 (2009)

Areas of Focus

Cybersecurity & Emerging Technologies

Government Advocacy & Public Policy

Land Use

Water

Related Industries

Climate Adaptation & Resilience

Colleges & Universities

Water, Sewer, & Irrigation Districts

The Power of Collaboration

Terese (T.C.) Richmond

Partner

Dividing the Waters, National Judicial College

Washington Wildlife and Recreation Coalition

Science to Climate Action

City of Edmonds, WA, Mayor's Climate Protection Committee

Federal Advisory Committee for the National Climate Assessment

Salish Sea Expeditions

Washington State Attorney General's Office

Arizona Department of Water Resources

Washington State Governor's Office

King County, Washington

Washington State Supreme Court

News

Presentations

Alerts

Updates / Newsletters

Publications

Areas of Focus

Related Industries

Education

University of Washington
Mediator Certificate, 2006

Gonzaga University School of Law J.D., magna cum laude, 1984

Whitman College B.A., 1978

Terese (T.C.) Richmond

Partner

Dividing the Waters, National Judicial College

Washington Wildlife and Recreation Coalition

Science to Climate Action

City of Edmonds, WA, Mayor's Climate Protection Committee

Federal Advisory Committee for the National Climate Assessment

Salish Sea Expeditions

Washington State Attorney General's Office

Arizona Department of Water Resources

Washington State Governor's Office

King County, Washington

Washington State Supreme Court

News

Presentations

Alerts

Updates / Newsletters

Publications

Areas of Focus

Related Industries

Education

University of Washington Mediator Certificate, 2006

Gonzaga University School of Law J.D., magna cum laude, 1984

Whitman College B.A., 1978

University of Washington
Mediator Certificate, 2006