Melissa S. Brown

Melissa S. Brown focuses her practice on environmental law, assisting clients on a wide variety of environmental issues. Her clients regularly benefit from her ability to:

• counsel them on environmental compliance issues involving both federal and state statutes and regulations that span all aspects of air, water, and land regulation
• offer advice on developments in environmental statutes and regulations
• represent them in rulemaking proceedings, challenges to regulations, and proceedings for regulatory relief
• assist in all phases of environmental permitting, including preparing permit applications and negotiating permit terms and conditions with the permitting agency
• represent them in permit appeals
• defend them in environmental litigation and enforcement matters before state and federal courts and administrative agencies
• negotiate settlements in courts and in Illinois Pollution Control Board and USEPA enforcement proceedings

Ms. Brown was previously an associate with the environmental law firm Hodge, Dwyer, & Driver. In 2016, Hodge, Dwyer, & Driver merged into HeplerBroom.

Education

• DePaul University College of Law, J.D., cum laude, 2014
• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, B.A. in Political Science, 2010

LAW SCHOOL HONORS/INVOLVEMENT

• DePaul Journal of Art, Technology, and Intellectual Property
• Environmental Law Society
• Dean’s Certificate of Pro Bono Service
• Dean’s List

Admissions & Affiliations

• Illinois
• U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois

Honors & Awards

• Best Lawyers' list of “Ones to Watch” (2021-2024)

News

Events & Speaking Engagements

• “Unpacking West Virginia and Sackett II: Key Impacts for Environmental Practitioners,” Illinois State Bar Association’s 21^st Annual Environmental Law Conference (Chicago, 2023). (Co-presenter)
• “Environmental Hot Topics,” Three Rivers Manufacturers’ Association Meeting (2022).
• “Illinois Environmental Regulatory Updates,” Illinois Chamber of Commerce Environmental Affairs Committee (2022).
• “Environmental Violations and Enforcement,” and “Illinois EPA Bureau of Land Update,” Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education webinar (2021). (Co-presenter)
• “Environmental Enforcement: Avoid if Possible, Navigate if Necessary,” Environmental Basics Conference sponsored by the Illinois Environmental Regulatory Group and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Springfield IL, 2019). (Co-presenter)
• “Coal Ash Update: What It Is, Where It Is, and What To Do About It,” Illinois State Bar Association’s 18th Annual Environmental Law Conference (Chicago, 2019). (Co-presenter)

Blog Posts

Publications

• “The Impact of West Virginia v. EPA on Illinois,” The Illinois Manufacturer (Fourth Quarter 2022).
• "U.S. Supreme Court Limits USEPA Authority in West Virginia v. EPA," Environmental Law Newsletter, Illinois State Bar Association (2022). (Co-author)
• "PFAS Investigations at Manufacturing Facilities and Industrial Sites in Illinois,” The Illinois Manufacturer (Fourth Quarter 2021). (Co-author)
• “Update on the Respirable Crystalline Silica General Industry and Maritime Standard,” Energy and Environment Blog, Illinois Manufacturers’’ Association (July 2018).
• “U.S. EPA Amends the Hazardous Waste Generator Improvements Rule,” The Illinois Manufacturer (Winter 2018). (Co-author)
• “How Will OSHA’s Crystalline Silica Rule Affect Construction and General Industry Employers?” The Illinois Manufacturer (Spring 2017). (Co-author)
• “How Will OSHA’s Crystalline Silica Rule Affect Construction and General Industry Employers?” The Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel, FDCC Blog (January 2017). (Co-author)
• Case Summary, In Re Beineke, 690 F.3d 1344 (Fed. Cir. 2012), 23 DePaul J. Art, Tech. & Intell. Prop. L., 511 (2013).