Douglas J. Crouse

Representative Experience

• Provided legal services for coal operators in West Virginia
• Defended numerous energy companies in federal court and state environmental boards against citizen suits and administrative appeals
• Argued before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in defense of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ issuance of a Clean Water Act § 404 fill permit to a coal operator against claims that mountaintop mining causes adverse human health effects
• Administered consent decree involving a novel stream restoration approach in a Clean Water Act citizen suit filed against a coal operator alleging violation of West Virginia’s “narrative” water quality standard
• Defended U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authorization of a Clean Water Act ¬ß 404 general permits for a major natural gas pipeline project

Licensed In

• West Virginia

Education

• J.D. Wake Forest University School of Law

• B.A. West Virginia University

Memberships

• Education Elevators Program: Vice President (2017–2019); Board of Directors (2015–2019); Volunteer Mentor (2009–2019)
• Editorial Board Member, Natural Resources & Environment, American Bar Association’s Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources (2017–2019)

Achievements

• Super Lawyers Rising Star®, Energy & Natural Resources Law, Charleston, WV (2015-2020, 2023-Present)

Speaking Engagements

• “OSHA to EPA: Environmental & Safety Regulatory Predictions Under a Trump Presidency,” Association of Corporate Counsel Colorado Chapter, In-house Counsel Forum, Denver Colorado, April 5, 2017
• “Conventional and Unconventional Warfare: The Increasing Criminalization of Both Clearly Wrong and Seemingly Ordinary Activities in the Mineral Industries,” EMLF 36th Annual Institute, Amelia Island, Florida, June 22, 2015

Publications

• “Muddying the (Ground) Water: When Does the CWA Apply?” American Bar Association’s Natural Resources & Environment, Vol. 33 No. 3, Winter 2019
• “A Dent in the Clean Water Act’s Permit Shield,” American Bar Association’s Natural Resources & Environment, Vol. 32 No. 1, Summer 2017